04 Dec 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, a light unto my path, a positive outlook on life, a reverential fear of God, abundance, as a father the son in whom he delighteth, be not wise in thine own eyes, bind them about thy neck, challenges to be responsibly handled, come to know and love him like we do, courage, creativity, curse, depart from evil, despise not the chastening of the Lord, divine protection, don't worry about tomorrow, duty bound, everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed, evildoing, faith, favour, fear the Lord, find favour and good understanding, fulfillment, get it deep in our hearts, God causes us to get wealth, God will make the paths straight before you, God's supernatural wisdom, good friends, good health, have fellowship and intimacy with God, he shall direct thy paths, health to thy navel, high esteem, holy spirit, honour the Lord with thy substance, hypothetical problems of tomorrow, in all thy ways acknowledge him, in the sight of God and man, Jesus Christ, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us, keep the Lord's commandments, lean not unto thine own understanding, length of days long life and peace, let not mercy and truth forsake thee, let thine heart keep my commandments, LOVE, marrow to thy bones, mercy, my son forget not my law, negative word, neither be thou weary of his correction, promotion, salvation, self-control, self-discipline, success, sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof, take therefore no thought for tomorrow, talent, the gospel truth, the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want, the morrow shall take thought for itself, the result of such devotion, the wise council of Solomon, thy barns be filled with plenty, thy presses burst out with new wine, thy word is a lamp unto my feet, to put it into proper practice, trust in the Lord with all thy heart, truth, use those blessings to help others, whom the Lord Loves He corrects, wisdom, with God and man, with the first fruits of all thine increase, worry gets you nowhere, worry is the devil's handiwork, write them upon the table of thine heart
Proverbs 3:1. My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments:
Ah friends, Thursday has rolled around somewhat quickly, and we’re all looking forward to Friday and the weekend, but remember we have to get through Thursday first, (smile) so let’s concentrate on today as Jesus so wisely warned us: ‘Take therefore no thought for the morrow (therefore don’t worry about tomorrow): for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil (trouble) thereof.’ (Matt. 6:34) Yes friends, the Lord knows what we need, and if we keep Him first place in our lives He will provide it. It’s like Bruh David says in that favourite psalm: ‘The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.’ (Ps. 23:1)
And we don’t need to worry about what will happen tomorrow, for like the scholars tell us; ‘each day has its own troubles and challenges to be responsibly handled, without worrying about the hypothetical problems that could arise tomorrow.’ That is not to say we should not make some cursory plans, or consider what consequences can follow from today’s problems, but not to fret and worry over them, so that we cannot handle today’s problems properly. Remember, worry, is the devil’s handiwork, and it get’s you nowhere, but heartache and sickness.
And that’s why Cousin Sol gives us this wonderful advice from Proverbs, which we all can quote, but do not properly put into practice, otherwise our lives would not be as difficult as they are. So let’s listen once again to the wise and wonderful council of Cousin Sol, the wisest man ever, and see if we can get it deep enough in our hearts and souls to put it into more serious practice than we’re currently doing. (smile)
So please read with me: ‘My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments: For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee.’ (Prov. 3:1-2) Now that’s the first lesson. Keep the Lord’s commandments for they shall bring us long life, and peace.
Then he continues: ‘Let not mercy (LOVING-KINDNESS) and truth forsake thee; bind them about thy neck ; write them upon the table of thine heart (thy mind): so shalt thou find favour and good understanding (high esteem) in the sight of God and man.’ (Prov. 3:3-4) There’s another lesson; to let mercy and truth be thoroughly bound within your heart, wear them like a necklace around your neck, for when those things are foremost in your behaviour, you will find favour with God and man.
Next comes the verses we all know and are quick to quote with our lips, but are not well written in our hearts. Cousin Sol lays it right on the line when he wisely declares: ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct (make smooth or straight) thy paths.’ (Prov. 3:5-6)
There it is my faithful brethren, the two verses that you can break the whole Bible down to. Place your complete trust in the Lord, lean on, depend on, and rely on Him, don’t go your own way, and faithfully acknowledge the Lord, or as the scholars tell us; ‘ have fellowship and intimacy with God in all of life. The result of such devotion is that God will make the paths straight before you.’
Oh my brethren, that’s the gospel truth, for it’s all about trust and faithfulness. The Lord is indeed trustworthy and faithful, and if we sincerely turn to Him for guidance, He will lead us along right paths, lead and direct our footsteps in this crazy world. Remember that memorable verse in Psalm 119: ‘Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.’ (Ps. 119:105) That’s what Cousin Sol is referring to there.
And having given us those two majestic verses, he continues: ‘Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel (body), and marrow (strength) to thy bones.’ (Prov. 3:7-8) More precious wisdom friends! If we don’t consider ourselves as overly wise and have a strong and reverential fear of the Lord, as well as not give evil any place in our hearts, our bodies will stay strong, for evildoing and boasting wreaks havoc on our bodies in due course.
Then Cousin Sol reminds us to ‘Honour the Lord with thy substance (possessions), and with the first fruits of all thine increase: so shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses (vats) shall burst out with new wine.’ (Prov. 3:9-10) Wow! And that’s certainly the undeniable truth! For when we give back to God as generously as He gives to us, our wealth grows. However, it must be the first fruits of our increase, not the last. Remember it is God who causes us to get wealth, (Deut. 8:18) and He desires His share first.
Then we come to the final words of wisdom in this awesome passage of scripture, where Cousin Sol so wisely advises: ‘My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be thou weary of his correction: For whom the Lord LOVETH he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.’ (Prov. 3:11-12) More gospel truth my people! For just like our earthly fathers punish or correct us when we do wrong, so does the Lord admonish those whom He LOVES. And yes, none of us like to be punished or corrected, but what kind of Father would He be, if He didn’t correct us when we did wrong eh? Certainly not a LOVING One!
And having heard the marvellous wisdom of Cousin Sol one more time, let’s hope that this time it will sink even deeper into our hears and souls so that we can practice it, because it’s all for our benefit. Now let’s go home declaring (steups!!!) our Thursday Blessings, undeserved blessings which God has so generously bestowed on us to help us do His earthly work.
As one strong and sincere 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 every day! Amen!’
That means we’re now duty bound to go out and use those blessing to help others, just as generously as the Lord bestowed them on us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…if we truly believe that God is our Creator and controller…then why do we refuse to put our complete trust in Him…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
27 Aug 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a state of weakness, addicted to perfection, allowing them to accomplish things beyond their own capabilities, be not wise in thine own eyes, become avenues for divine strength and grace to manifest, brokenness, calls for trust and dependence on God's grace, Christ's power manifests in our lives through our weaknesses, depart from evil, despairing in hardships, direct thy paths, do the right thing, encourages believers, endure to the very end with Christ, evil ruling the roost, faith, fear the Lord, feel like failures, glory in my infirmities, God's power is most effective, God's strength is not diminished by our weaknesses, guiltiness, halfway home, hands on the plough, he said unto me, health to thy navel, help me let go of perfection, help me remember, holy spirit, I expereince your healing and sufficiency, I learn to depend on and trust you, I try so hard to follow your ways, in all thy ways acknowledge him, in those moments, In Touch Devotional Magazine, Jesus Christ, Jeus is the only perfect one, lean not unto thine own understanding, LOVE, marrow to thy bones, mercy, most gladly therefore, my brokenness is where we meet, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, my failures, my grace is sufficient for thee, my strength is made perfect in weakness, not in fine fettle, not looking back, not that we are sufficient of ourselves, not up to scratch, often falling short, open my arms to you, opportunities for God to demonstrate His strength and support, our sufficiency is of God, paradox, perceived failings, perfection was never part of your plan, redemptive history, remove the thorn from his flesh, salvation, sit heavy on my heart, so glad to be alive, supernatural powers, the breath of life, the breath of life is still flowing through me, the power of Christ may rest upon me, the sufficiency of Scripture, their vulnerabilities, to a glorious future with Jesus, to face difficulties, to overcome personal limitations, Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, trusting, truth, vulnerability, Wednesday Wail, wisdom
2 Corinthians 12:9a. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength (power) is made perfect in weakness.
Well friends, this sunshiny Wednesday morning, we’re on a later bus than normal, and it’s not because of our Wednesday morning gathering, because that doesn’t start back for another couple of weeks. But the ole fella got up late and was just not in fine fettle. And the sad part is that I could not pin point the problem. I just knew that I wasn’t up to scratch. And there’s nothing that annoys me like feeling lousy and not knowing the reason. But that’s my story for today…and I’m sticking to it. (smile) Anyway, after a shower and some coffee, I’m not feeling to badly now; good enough to write the Bit.
So here goes. This last Wednesday in August we will look at the prayer from the In Touch Devotional for this month. Please pray with me: ‘Lord, I try so hard… to follow Your ways, to do the right thing. But it often seems as if I’m falling short, and those failures sit heavy on my heart. In those moments, help me remember perfection was never part of Your plan. Rather, my brokenness is where we meet. Where I learn to depend on and trust You, where I experience Your healing and sufficiency. Lord, help me let go of perfection and instead open my arms to You. In Jesus’ name, amen.’
And unfortunately, many of us believers do suffer from that addiction to perfection. Oh, we are expected to do excellent work, but not kill ourselves to be perfect, because the Lord knows He did not make perfect human beings. The only one in human form that’s ever been perfect is Jesus! The Lord made us less than perfect so that we would have to turn to Him in our weakness. It’s like when Bruh Paul asked the Lord three times to take away the thorn from his flesh. ‘And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength (power) is made perfect in weakness.’ (2 Cor. 12:9a)
And this commentary explains that verse by saying: ‘It suggests that God’s power is fully displayed and most effective when a person is in a state of weakness or vulnerability. This paradox encourages believers to embrace their perceived limitations, trusting that their vulnerabilities become avenues for divine strength and grace to manifest, allowing them to accomplish things beyond their own capabilities.’
That’s why Bruh Paul exulted thus in the next half of the verse. ‘Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities (weaknesses), that the power of Christ may rest upon me.’ (2 Cor. 12:9b) Yes, Bruh Paul then glories in his weaknesses, realizing that it’s through those weaknesses that the power of Christ would manifest in his life.
So, as the commentary continues: ‘The core idea is that God’s strength is not diminished by our weaknesses but rather highlighted by them, allowing for a greater demonstration of His power working through us. But it calls for trust and dependence on God’s grace and strength to overcome personal limitations and face difficulties, rather than trying to rely solely on one’s own abilities. So, rather than despairing in hardships or perceived failings, believers are to see these as opportunities for God to demonstrate His strength and support.’
And we all know that is not easy to do, especially in light of our failure to achieve perfection, when guiltiness comes upon us and we feel like failures. But until we learn to let go of our own perfection desires, and place our total trust in God, we will forever feel guilty and consider ourselves failures.
It’s like those marvellous verses of wisdom from Cousin Sol in Proverbs that we all know and quote but then don’t action them in our lives. ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct (make straight) thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel (body), and marrow (strength or refreshment) to thy bones.’ (Prov. 3:5-8)
And my people, if we’d only follow those few simple commands – trust in the Lord and not in our own prideful selves, reverence Him and depart from evil – then our lives would be much more enjoyable, and we would not feel the guilt and failure we will always experience when we rely on our own comparatively puny, finite strength and wisdom. And let’s not forget that most telling verse that Bruh Paul wrote earlier on his second letter to the Corinthians: ‘Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God.’ (2 Cor. 3:5)
And what does that mean? Firstly, it means that God is self-sufficient in Himself; has always been so, and will always be so. However, we His human creation don’t have the supernatural powers that He possesses, and thus need to rely on Him for our sufficiency. And on top of all that, we have this commentary that asks and then explains: ‘What is the biblical definition of sufficiency? “We can define the sufficiency of Scripture as follows: The sufficiency of Scripture means that Scripture contained all the words of God that He intended His people to have at each stage of redemptive history, and that it now contains all the words of God we need for salvation, for trusting Him perfectly, and for obeying …’
And you know what my fellow believers, there’s never been a time like right now, with evil and ungodliness ruling the roost, when we desperately need to believe, trust, obey and seek the sufficiency of Christ, rather than our own ineffective efforts. End of the Sermon! (smile) Now let’s declare (steupesss!!!) our Wednesday Wail, letting the whole world know of our wonderful position in Christ Jesus!
As one strong and sincere voice: ‘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 it’s been faithfully promised, that all those who endure with Jesus to the very end, will enjoy an even more glorious future than we can ever ask or imagine. So let’s be wise and plan to endure to the very end nuh, in order to enjoy that more than glorious future together! Much LOVE!
…God made us to be dependent on Him…not on our inferior powers…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
07 Aug 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: A Daily Prayer for Wisdom, according to his glorious power, and with all thy getting, anything praiseworthy, as I seek your presence each day, bad air advisories, be careful for nothing, be filled with the knowledge of his will, be not weary of God's correction, be not wise in thine own eyes, being fruitful in every good work, bounden duty, Christians, confident that you'll direct my paths, courage, creativity, curse, delivered us from the power of darkness, despise not the chastening of the Lord, faith, favour, fear the Lord and depart from evil, fill me with the knowledge of your will, get understanding, giving thanks unto the Father, growing in spiritual maturity, guard my heart and mind in Christ Jesus, guide me into your truth, have redemption through Christ's blood, health to thy navel, holy spirit, honour the Lord with thy substance, I acknowledge you, I lay down my anxieties, I trust you with all my heart, in all my ways, in all thy ways acknowledge him, in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, in everything by prayer and supplication, increasing in the knowledge of God, Jesus Christ, lean not unto thine own understanding, let your requests be made known unto God, live a life pleasing to you, LOVE, make straight your paths, marrow to thy bones, mercy, more than conquerors, negative word, not relying on my own understanding, nothing that comes against us will prosper, of the inheritance of the saints, presenting every need with thanksgiving, qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of, receive clear direction for my life, salvation, self-control. self-discipline, strengthen my faith, strengthened with all might, success, supernatural strength, the BIBLE, the forgiveness of sins, the peace of God which passeth all understading, the peace that surpasses all understanding, therefore get wisdom, thy barns be filled with plenty, thy presses burst out with new wine, Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, trusting that your peace, truth, unto all patience and longsuffering, walk worthy of the Lord, whatsoever things are true, wisdom, wisdom and understanding, wisdom is the principal thing, with joyfulness, with thanksgiving, with the firstfruits of all thine increase
Colossians 1:9b. to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.
Oh my people, can you believe it’s already the 7th of August; we’ve already completed a week of this new month. It seems to be going just as fast as the others, and also being just as hot and dry, with bad air advisories and little or no rain. But being children of God, we have the godly ability to handle anything that comes against us. As the Bible tells us, we are more than conquerors (Rom. 8:37) and nothing that comes against us will prosper. (Is. 54:17) But be that as it may, all our God given help begins with prayer. And today we’ll check out one titled ‘A Daily Prayer for Wisdom.’ And as so often is the case, I cannot remember who sent it to me, but it’s still very viable. (smile)
So please pray with me. ‘Father, I trust you with all my heart, not relying on my own understanding. In all my ways, I acknowledge You, confident that You’ll direct my path. Today, fill me with the knowledge of Your will through all wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so I may live a life pleasing to You. I lay down my anxieties, presenting every need with thanksgiving, trusting that Your peace which goes beyond all understanding will guard my heart and mind in Christ Jesus. Guide me Lord, into Your truth, and strengthen my faith as I seek Your presence each day. In Jesus name. Amen.’
And what I like about that prayer is that it’s a compact, combination of several verses of the Bible. As the card says, ‘This daily prayer is based on Scripture verses from: Proverbs 3:5-6; Colossians 1:9; Philippians 4:6-7.’ And what better time and place to review those foundational scriptures that we all know but don’t live up to as we should? None like right now! (smile) So let’s begin our review with these marvellous words from Cousin Sol’s amazing Book of Wisdom, Proverbs.
He wisely advises: ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct (make straight) your parts.’ (Prov. 3:5-6) Oh friends, that’s wisdom to the nth degree! You know, if we would do only those things contained in those two verses, our lives would be so enriched, both spiritually and physically, that we would not know what to do with ourselves, for that’s the basic wisdom of our Christian faith; trust the Lord, listen to His commands and do them. And when we add these other words of that scripture passage to those above, we get such a beautiful picture of Christian living!
Listen up, ‘Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel (body), and marrow (strength) to thy bones. Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses (vats) be filled with new wine. My son despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be weary of (detest) his correction: For whom the Lord LOVETH he correcteth; even as the father the son in whom he delighteth.’ (Prov. 3:7-12) And right there friends we have a synopsis of the Bible in a few verses. If you followed them sincerely, you could not go wrong.
Then there’s this other beautiful scripture passage from the pen of Bruh Paul to the Colossians re his prayer for them. ‘For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.’(Col. 1:9) Now that’s the verse quoted by the prayer, but we cannot leave out the other parts of Bruh Paul’s prayer which gives us such understanding into his prayers.
He then continues: ‘That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness; Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet (qualified us) to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in (the) light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated (transferred) us into the kingdom of his dear Son (the Son of His LOVE): In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:’ (Col. 1:9-14)
Wow friends! What a wonderful prayer! Please note that Bruh Paul didn’t pray for them to be rich or healthy or have no problems, but for them to be totally anchored in God; learning His word and doing it, thus growing in spiritual maturity. And it’s a method of prayer that we can all adopt that rises above our physical and material desires. And the last scripture used in our earlier prayer is another marvellous passage, this time from Bruh Paul’s letter to the Philippians, where he desires to introduce them to the God of peace.
He consequently writes. ‘Be careful (anxious) for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. and the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep (guard) your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.’ (Phil. 4:6-7) Yes my fellow saints, more foundational scriptures; we must not be anxious or fearful about anything, but take all our anxieties and fears to the Lord in prayer, and when we do that, His outstanding peace, which is greater than we can ever understand will keep our hearts free from worry, fear and anxiety.
And then in Bruh Paul’s practical style, he tells them what to think about. ‘Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest (noble), whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise (anything praiseworthy), think (meditate) on these things. Those things which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.’ (Phil. 4:8-9)
Oh my people! What more can we ask for eh? Not much. However, the Lord in His overwhelming generosity has given us, what we call our Thursday Blessings. That’s undeserved blessings, to do His earthly work. So let’s declare them (chuh!!!) and thus activate them right now nuh. As one strong and sincere 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 every day! Amen!’
Now, it’s our bounden duty to go out and use those blessings on behalf of others, just as generously as the Lord blessed us with them, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…wisdom is the principal thing…therefore get wisdom…and with all thy getting…get understanding… (Prov. 4:7)
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
24 Jun 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: all things work together for good, another scorcher, as a father the son in whom he delighteth, be as a tree planted by the waters, be not weary of his correction, be not wise in thine own eyes, blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, bring forth thy righteousness as the light., called according to His purpose, casting all your care upon him, cease from anger, christianity, come to know and love him like we do, commit thy way unto the Lord, delight thyself also in the Lord, depart from evil, despise not the chastening of the Lord, direct thy paths, faith, fear the Lord, feed on God's faithfulness, forsake wrath, fret not thyself because of him who prospers, fret not thyself in any wise to do evil, give thee the desires of thine heart, god, God will cause us to succeed even in tough times, he cares for you, he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him, he that comes to God, health to thy body, heat warnings, her leaf shall be green, holy spirit, honour the Lord with thy substance, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, hurry, I will not fear what flesh can do to me, in all thy ways acknowledge him, In god I have put my trust, In God will I praise his word, in god's eyes, in the year of drought, it only causes harm, Jesus Christ, lean not unto thine own understanding, let not your heart be troubled, lock stock and barrel, LOVE, marrow to thy bones, mercy, mut believe that He is, neither shall cease from yielding fruit, rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him, run from your kin to your enemies, s promised never to leave nor forsake us, salvation, shall not be anxious, shall not see when heat comes, share His love with my neighbours, share the amazing love and friendship of Christ, so shalt thou dwell in the land, spreads out her roots by the river, the beloved of God, the BIBLE, the fear of man bringeth a snare, the man who brings wicked schemes to pass, thy barns be filled with plenty, thy judgement as the noonday, thy vats burst out with new wine, to them that love God, trust in the Lord, trust in the Lord and do good, Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, trust my friend Jesús, truth, Tuesday Mantra, what time I am afraid I will trust in thee, whom the Lord loves he chastens, whoso puts their trust in the Lord shall be safe God, wisdom, with the firstfruits of all thine increase, without faith it is impossible to please God, worry, you believe in God believe also in me
Proverbs 29:25. The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe (secure, lit. set on high).
It’s Tuesday friends, and another scorcher, with heat warnings. But we’ve gotten through the last two fiery days with God’s help, so why won’t we get through this one too? No reason whatsoever! For He’s promised numerous times in His word to never leave nor forsake us, if we put our total and sincere trust in Him. And I guess today is a day for reminding ourselves of scriptures that advise us to trust in the Lord God of our forefathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But there are so many that I don’t know which ones to choose, so for ease of understanding, we’ll choose some of them with which we’re already acquainted. (smile)
And we’ll begin with this one that shows Bruh David’s awesome trust in God, when he ran from King Saul to his deadly enemies, the Philistines in Gath, and they took him in. He writes in Psalm 56 – Times of Distress: ‘What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. In God will I praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can to me.’ (Ps. 56:3-4) Now, if you can run to your enemies from your own kin, then that’s showing amazing trust in the God you worship.
And that’s what’s expected of us, when Isaiah awesomely declares: ‘Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed (sustained by) thee. Trust ye in the Lord for ever: for in the Lord Jehovah (Yahweh) is everlasting strength (the rock of ages).’ (Is. 26:3-4) And if you don’t believe that, then read the rest of that passage, where Isaiah details God’s amazing strength. (Is. 26:5-11)
Now here is another dandy scripture, this time from the pen of the prophet Jeremiah. ‘Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see (fear) when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful (anxious) in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.’ (Jer. 17:7-8) Wow mih bredrin! That’s a scripture that’s just right for today, with all the heat and drought that’s currently assaulting us. Yes, with total trust in our great God, we have no reason to fear, because He will cause us to succeed even in tough times!
Meanwhile, Peter puts it this way: ‘Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.’ (1 Pet. 5:6-7) And remember, you can only truly trust when you are submissive to whomever, or whatever you claim to trust in. That’s why the author of Hebrews tells us: ‘But without faith it is impossible to please him (God): for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.’ (Heb. 11:6)
Ah mih people, faith is born of trust, you cannot have faith in someone or something unless you have invested trust in the situation or the person. Then there are these verses from Psalm 37, aptly titled, Trust in the Lord, verses we continually quote but never quite live up to them. See if you remember them. (smile)
‘Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed (feed on God’s faithfulness). Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgement (justice) as the noonday. Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices (schemes) to pass. Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil (for it only causes harm).’ (Ps. 37:3-8)
So what else can we say about having trust in the Lord eh? Plenty! Just listen to these marvellous verses from the pen of the wisest one, Cousin Sol, also ones we know, but don’t put into full use. In Proverbs, he exhorts and admonishes us thus! ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct (make straight or smooth) thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel (body), and marrow (strength, refreshment) to thy bones.
Honour the Lord with thy substance (possessions), and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses (vats) shall burst out with new wine. My son despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be weary of (detest) his correction: For whom the Lord LOVETH he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.’ (Prov. 3:5-12)
And that’s wisdom to the nth degree! So why don’t we put those verses to better use eh? Who knows? But because we don’t, we cannot utilize the fullness of God’s promises and provisions. There’s also this one from Cousin Sol that might not be so familiar. ‘The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe (secure, lit. set on high).’ (Prov. 29:25) Another bit of wise advice.
Then there’s this famous verse from Bruh Paul to the Romans. ‘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) Now that calls for great trust to believe that in spite of all our problems, everything will eventually work out for the best. But that’s what our faith is about; trust in Almighty God. It’s like Jesus said: ‘Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.’ (John 14:1) And that’s exactly what we need to do.
And for those of us who are sincerely trying to do that, let’s go home declaring our Tuesday Mantra, letting all and sundry know to whom we belong, lock, stock and barrel. As one strong voice: ‘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 my immediate neighbours, as well as with the whole wide world! Glory be!’
Now, we are required to go out and share the amazing LOVE and friendship of Christ with others, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…sincere trust can only come from…strong hope, belief and faith…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
30 Apr 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: acknowledge God in all thy ways, as a father the son in whom he delighteth, as a shock of corn comes in its season, be in league with the stones of the field, be not wise in thine own eyes, chaos, christianity, Christians, climate change, come to thy grave in a full age, dangerous aspect, deliver thee in six troubles, depart from evil, despise not the chastening of the Lord, despise the Lord's correction, disaster, don't be discouraged, Eliphaz the Temanite, endure to the end, eyes fixed straight ahead, faith, fear the Lord, fear the Lord and depart from evil, fellowship and intimacy with God, forfeit many blessings, forgotten the exhortation, glad to be alive, God-centred lives, halfway home, hands on the plough, happy is the manhwas God corrects, he maketh sore and bindeth up, he shall direct thy paths, he shall redeem thee from death, he that spareth his rod hateth his son, he woundeth and his hands make whole, health to thy navel, hear it, heartfelt prayers, hid from the scourge of the tongue, holy spirit, honour the Lord with all thy substance, in famine, in war, Jesus Christ, know thou it for thy good, laugh at destruction and famine, lawlessness, lean not to thine own understanding, life waits on no one, LOVE, make hay while the sun shines, make smooth thy paths, marrow to thy bones, mercy, native instincts, neither be weary of his correction, nor faint when thou art rebuked of Him, not be afraid of destruction, not be afraid of the beasts of the earth, not turning back, numerous blessings, salvation, second wind day, so it is, thank God, the beasts of the field shall be at peace with thee, the BIBLE, the breath of life is still flowing through me, the power of the sword, there shall no evil touch thee, thine offspring as the grass of the earth, thy barns be filled with plenty, thy presses shall burst out with new wine, thy seed shall be great, thy tabernacle shall be at peace, to a glorious future with Jesus, trials and tribulations, trust in the Lord with all thy heart, truth, we have searched it, Wednesday Wail, when you don't hear you feel, which speaks unto you as the children of God, whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, windstorms, wisdom, with the firstfruits of all thine increase
Proverbs 3:7. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord and depart from evil.
And then it was Wednesday, our second wind day of the work week, but unbelievably, it’s also the last day of April 2025. Can you imagine that April’s over already, and most of the things we were supposed to do in this month have not been done? I can’t handle it nuh. The days are passing by too quickly for my liking. But I guess I should remember that some wise person once said, ‘life waits on no one.’ And that’s the living truth. So, all I can do is pray and ask the Lord to help me put whatever day(s) I have left to good use, in His cause. In other words, to make hay while the sun shines.
And the sun is shining right now, so let’s see what hay we can make nuh. (smile) Now, the rain we were promised yesterday really never showed up, except for a li’l drizzle early in the day. I suppose the strong winds we experienced all day, drove away the rain clouds. But that’s another intriguing and dangerous aspect of climate change. In recent years we’ve been having windstorms aplenty, even during the summer months. And we can only do our best to help turn things around, while offering up heartfelt prayers to our great and wonderful God for help to handle whatever comes against us.
That brings us to these wise words of Cousin Sol in Proverbs, words that we all know, but don’t necessarily practice enough. And with all the chaos, disaster and lawlessness that’s currently surrounding us, now is a perfect time to review them. Cousin Sol wisely advises us to: ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct (make smooth or straight) thy paths.
Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel (body) and marrow (strength) to thy bones. Honour the Lord with thy substance (possessions), and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses (vats) shall burst forth with new wine.’ (Prov. 3:5-10)
Oh my people, those are probably the six wisest verses in the Bible. And if we follow them, then our lives will be God-centred and filled with numerous blessings…as well as the necessary trials and tribulations. (smile) But we will be able to handle those with God as our Guide and Helper. According to the scholars, in verses 5-6, ‘Three commands are given: trust, meaning “rely on, depend on”; lean not, meaning do not depend on your own native instincts; and acknowledge him, meaning have fellowship and intimacy with God in all of life. The result of such devotion is that God will make the paths straight before you.’
And if we add honouring God with our first fruits and tithes, then our lives will be almost complete. And why almost you ask? Because there’s one more important provision in Cousin Sol’s game plan, where he wisely advises: ‘My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be weary of (detest) his correction: For whom the Lord LOVETH, he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.’ (Prov. 3:11-12) And that’s ever so true my faithful brethren! Our God corrects us because He LOVES us just like our earthly fathers do, and if we despise that correction, or rebel against it, we’ll forfeit many blessings.
And there are several scriptures that remind us of that particular subject. In the Book of Job, his friend Eliphaz the Temanite expounds on it thus: ‘Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty: For he maketh sore, and bindeth up: he woundeth, and his hands make whole. He shall deliver thee in six troubles: yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee. In famine he shall redeem thee from death: and in war from the power (hand) of the sword. Thou shalt be hid from the scourge of the tongue: neither shalt thou be afraid of destruction when it cometh.
At destruction and famine thou shalt laugh: neither shalt thou be afraid of the beasts of the earth. For thou shalt be in league with (have a covenant with) the stones of the field: and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with thee. And thou shalt know that thy tabernacle (tent) shall be in peace: and thou shalt visit thy habitation, and shalt not sin (find nothing amiss). Thou shalt know also that thy seed (descendants) shall be great, and thine offspring as the grass of the earth. Thou shalt come to thy grave in a full age, like as a shock of corn cometh in his season. Lo this, we have searched it, so it is; hear it; and know thou it for thy good.’ (Job 5:17-27)
Oh friends, it seems that Eliphaz had researched the subject and came up with those marvellous conclusions. So, we will also advise us to hear it, and know it for our own good, because it’s a rather important subject in God’s kingdom. Meanwhile the author of Hebrews in talking about Jesus and what He underwent on our behalf, reminds us: ‘And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as children (sons of God), My son, despise not thou the chastening (discipline) of the Lord, nor faint (be discouraged) when thou art rebuked of him. for whom the Lord LOVETH, he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he recieveth.’ (Heb. 12: 5-6)
Yes friends, God disciplines those He LOVES, in conjunction with these wise words of Cousin Sol’s from Proverbs: ‘He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that LOVETH him, chasteneth him betimes (promptly).’ (Prov. 3:24) Many of you might not agree with that verse, but speaking from personal experience, I can assure you that it works. It doesn’t mean abusing a child, but it does mean as the old people would say, when you don’t hear, you feel. And I can assure you too, that if many of our young people had had a taste of the rod in their early lives, they would not be the rebellious and ungodly people they are today.
And Jesus Himself considered discipline important, when He said in His message to the church at Laodicea: ‘As many as I LOVE, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore and repent.’ (Rev. 3:19) So if Jesus said it, who am I to refute it eh? Oh my people, we can either be obedient, or accept the Lord’s discipline with grace. It’s as simple as that! Now, let’s go home declaring our Wednesday Wail, letting the whole world know of our wonderful position in Jesus Christ.
As one strong and sincere voice: ‘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 if we endure with Christ to the very end, then that future will be even more glorious than we can ever imagine. So let’s be wise and endure to the end nuh, and so enjoy that glorious future together! Much LOVE!
…sincerely trusting God…and totally leaning on Him…are the wisest things a human being can ever do…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
25 Oct 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: acknowledge God in all thy ways, balmy temps, be not wise in thine own eyes, better examples of Christian living, bind them about thy neck, compassions, depart from evil, despise not the chastening of the Lord, escalating problems, faith, fear the Lord, forget no my law, Friday chant, god, God's goodness and mercies, good understanding, he shall direct thy paths, health to thy navel, high esteem, holy spirit, if thou wilt walk in my ways, in the sight of God and man, Jesus Christ, keep my statutes and commandments, lean not unto your own understanding, length of days, lengthen thy days, let not mercy and truth forsake thee, let thine heart keep my commandments, live up to our words, long life, LOVE, marrow to thy bones, mercy, my son forget not my law, neither be thou weary of his correction, new every mrning, omnipotent help, peace, praise Your Holy Name, put God first place, seek ye first the kingdom of God, simmering unrest, sinful world, so shalt thou find favour, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, Thank You Lord, the first fruits of all thine increase, thy barns be filled with plenty, thy presses burst out with new wine, Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, truth, undeserving children of men, unexpected storms, ungodly earth, wake up and smell the coffee, whom the Loves he corrects, wisdom, wise guidance, write them upon the table of thine heart
Proverbs 3:1. My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments:
Well, it looks like another day filled with mostly sunshine, but not balmy temps; just seasonal ones! (smile) But we’ll take the sunshine anytime over the gloom, and thus we can joyfully shout: ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday, and the weekend is here at long last!
And I do hope that all of us gave much thanks to the Lord for allowing us to wake up and see another day on this amazing, though too sinful and ungodly earth, because it’s only through His goodness and mercies, His amazing compassions, which are new every morning, that we are not destroyed! (Lam. 3:22-23) And all God’s children gave a grateful shout of, ‘Thank You Lord for Your goodness and mercy to us undeserving children of men! We LOVE You and praise Your Holy Name! Amen.’
Now, if those words truly came from our hearts, if we were sincere in our prayer, then, let’s try and live up to it nuh, as we go about our lives today. And how do we do that? Basically by keeping God first place in our lives, and there are lots of scriptures that remind us of that, especially this one from Jesus, that we sometimes get tired of hearing, (smile) but which is oh so necessary for us to remember each and every day. ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:33)
Yes, it can be somewhat tiring to hear it, but we need to constantly remember it, so that we can practice it daily. God cannot get to be and stay first place in our lives unless and until we put Him there, and keep Him there! And that can only be done by having the Holy Spirit constantly reminding us of it.
And we have that marvellous example of doing just that in Cousin Sol’s early days, when he asked the Lord for wisdom and understanding to rule His people Israel, and the Lord was so pleased, that he didn’t ask for wealth and long life and the lives of his enemies, that He gave him those very things; wealth and honour, power and wisdom like no other man before or after him. (1 Kin. 3:6-13) But there was also this most important proviso. ‘And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen (prolong) thy days.’ (1 Kin. 3:14)
Yes friends, Cousin Sol needed to walk in God’s will for all those blessings to continue and come to pass. But sadly, in his old age, he forgot about God and turned to the many gods of his concubines. And that’s why the Lord LOVED Bruh David and elevated him and his name so much; despite all of his wrong doings, he never turned away from the God of his forefathers, always had a place in his heart for Him, always turned to Him for guidance and wisdom.
And it’s rather sad and unfortunate that Cousin Sol lost his way with God, especially after writing all the wonderful things in Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and Song of Solomon. Now, let’s check out this one passage from Proverbs that covers it all; that marvellous scripture in chapter 3, so aptly titled – Keep My Commandments.
Please read and inwardly digest with me (smile). ‘My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments: For length of days, and long life, and peace shall they add to thee.’ (Prov. 3:1-2) It’s the very same things the Lord had told Cousin Sol in the passage above from Kings. Then he continues: ‘Let not mercy (LOVING-kindness) and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart: So shalt thou find favour and good understanding (high esteem) in the sight of God and man.’ (Prov. 3:3-4)
More absolute truth my fellow believers. But here are the most practical guidelines ever, in keeping God first place in our hearts, minds, bodies and souls, all from the pen of Cousin Sol. ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct (make smooth or straight) thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel (body), and marrow (strength, refreshment) to thy bones.
Honour the Lord with thy substance (possessions), and with the first fruits of thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses (vats) shall burst out with new wine. My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be thou weary of his correction: For whom the Lord LOVETH he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.’ (Prov. 3:5-12)
And that’s basically how we keep God first place in our lives! It’s not always easy, but that’s why we were given the Holy Spirit to help and guide us in doing so. Now, with all of that wonderful scripture under our belts, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant to get divine aid to help with our earthly problems.
Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help.
Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times.
We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
But you know what friends, in the long run it all boils down to us being improved and better examples of Christian living. Unless that happens, we will not see any divine aid. Please, let’s remember that and act accordingly, Much LOVE!
…with God first place in us…there’s no need to worry…about anything…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
19 Jul 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a new flock of believers, a simple life, acknowledging God, activities curtailed, artificial intelligence, be not wise in thine own eyes, Bible, bring backsliders back to your fold, Cloudstrike, crying out for help, depart from evil, despise not God's chastening, disaster mode, energy, enthusiasm, faith, fear not neither be dismayed, fear the Lord, Friday chant, go to God in prayer, god, God is not a man that he should lie, God's omnipotent help, health to thy navel, honour the Lord with thy first fruits, honour the Lord with thy substance, I am the Lord I change not, Information Technology, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Jesus is the same yesterday today and for ever, lean not unto thine own understanding, LOVE, marrow to thy bones, monstrous problems, negative circumstances, problems escalating, raise their voices in praise, simmering unrest, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the error of their ways, the Lord will not fail nor forsake thee, the perfect Christian life, the throne of grace, thy barns shall be filled with plenty, thy presses shall burst out with new wine, tremendous reliance on technology, Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, unexpected storms, wake up and smell the coffee, whom the Lord loves he chastens, wisdom
Proverbs 3:5. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
And then it was Friday… but the shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday! were not as loud or as plentiful as they usually are because many people are still in disaster mode and don’t have the enthusiasm, energy or faith to raise their voices in praise. But raising out voices in praise is exactly what we ought to do in dire situations because acknowledging God raises our levels of energy, enthusiasm and faith, despite our negative circumstances.
And to make matters worse, this morning there’s been a technological breakdown with a computing firm called Cloudstrike, which has paralyzed systems and events all over the world. It’s not a hacking or invasion of the system but a technological problem and hopefully by day’s end it will be corrected. But in the meantime many institutions, both large and small cannot carry on their business as usual. Consequently, a large portion of the population has also had their activities curtailed by the outage.
It just shows the tremendous reliance we’ve placed on technology and the worldwide difficulties it causes when something goes awry. But that’s the way of our current world, Information Technology (IT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are now ruling the roost. And we’re now experiencing what can happen when we place all our eggs in one fragile basket, for though technology is wonderful when it works properly, but the smallest wrinkle can cause monstrous problems.
We just have to learn to handle those times when technology lets us down. And the first thing we should always do when unexpected situations arise is go to God in prayer for wisdom and strength to handle them. He is our guide and protector and will NEVER lead us down the wrong path. And we have God’s faithful promise of that from way back when Moses said it to the Israelites: ‘And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.’ (Deut. 31:8)
Yes friends that’s the Lord’s ever-faithful promise! And since He does not change, as this commentary tells us: ‘Malachi 3:6 says, “I am the Lord, I change not.” Hebrews 13:8 says Jesus is the same “yesterday, today, and forever.” When everything else shifts and changes, you and I are still standing on a solid, unchanging foundation.’ Wow! What assurance we have my brethren!
And furthermore God doesn’t lie, as the Bible assures us: ‘God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?’ (Num. 23:19) That means whatever He promises, or says He’ll do, it will be done! Matter fixed! And when it comes to seeking godly direction, these wise words from the wisest man who ever lived, Cousin Sol, should be our guiding light.
‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy way acknowledge him, and he shall direct (make smooth or straight) thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel (body), and marrow (strength) to thy bones. Honour the Lord with thy substance (possessions), and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses (vats) shall burst out with new wine. My son, despise not the chastisement of the Lord; neither be weary of (detest) his correction: for whom the Lord LOVETH he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.’ (Prov. 3:5-12)
Oh friends, those are verses to live by! Why? Because they encompass all of what God expects from us! Trusting in Him, and not in ourselves; having a reverential fear of Him and not engaging in evil; honouring Him by being generous in our relationships, first to him, and then to our fellow man; and not despising His correction when we do wrong. If we follow those basic desires of God, then our paths will be straight, our bodies will be strong and healthy, our lives will be prosperous; overall, the Lord will cause His face to shine upon us.
But yuh know what? Our intelligence and information levels have risen so much in the last century, that we no longer focus on the simple things in life, everything now needs to be more sophisticated and complex, otherwise it’s not worthwhile. But friends, the simple things have always been, and will always be the best way to go. And we’ve said that to point out the simple commands that Cousin Sol lays down for the perfect Chrisitan life, but we try to make it much more complicated than it ought to be. And hopefully, this time around, those simple directives will stick in our minds and we’ll put them into action and thus simplify out much too complicated lives. (smile)
Now, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant to help with our earthly problems. Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help.
Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times.
We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
And if we truly desire divine aid, then we’ve got to set a better example as believers in Jesus Christ! Much LOVE!
…Jesus lived a simple life for a reason…it was the easiest and best life to live…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
19 Nov 2022
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a better tomorrow, a vulnerable strength, able to reach our destiny, aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow, be not wise in thine own eyes, beacons of humility, buy into God's plan, depart from evil, direct thy paths, eternal state of life, fear the Lord, God has a plan for every life, God's presence, going the extra mile, have the light of life, he that followeth me, health to thy navel, hellfire and damnation, I am the light of the world, I want to be in their number, in all thy ways acknowledge him, lazy Saturday, lean not unto thine own understanding, LOVE, marrow to thy bones, meekness doesn't mean weak, not fearful of being hurt, on the wrong side of the fence, one more excuse, redeemed people, shall not walk in darkness, steps into the fray, strength under control, the former things are passed away, the tabernacle of God, Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, turning the other cheek, wipe away all tears
Proverbs 3:5. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
Saturday, oh lazy Saturday, so glad to see you! And the good thing about Saturdays in the winter time, is that you don’t go out unless you really really have to! (smile) Especially if, as my computer tells me, it’s snowing now, which it isn’t in my area, although it might be in some other area, but that’s just one more excuse to enjoy a lazy Saturday. (smile) Anyway, enough laziness, let’s get to the Lord’s business and see what we can make of the quotes that our friend Anselm sent us this past week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow.
Now, he only sent us three quotes, so today’s Bit ought to be short…Hn! I wouldn’t count on it, with my penchant for being long-winded. (smile) And the first quote says: ‘Being vulnerable is a strength, not a weakness.’ And that’s the gospel truth! For although the word ‘vulnerable’ is defined as ‘susceptible to, or able to be easily physically or mentally hurt, influenced, or attacked,’ in another sense, when one is vulnerable, one isn’t fearful of being hurt or abused, but steps into the fray in spite of one’s vulnerability.
And that comes out most forcefully in the emotion of LOVE, for when one LOVES, one is open to all kinds of negative things, but it doesn’t stop one from LOVING. And I think we also see a vulnerable strength in the word ‘meek, or meekness.’ Used in a negative manner it means weak and/or submissive, but used in a positive or biblical manner it means strength under control. And who are more vulnerable than Christians eh, if we truly follow Christ’s advice, like LOVING our enemies, going the extra mile, turning the other cheek, etc. etc.
As Bruh Paul quotes Ps. 44:22 to the Roman church. ‘As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that LOVED us.’ (Rom. 8:36-37) Yes, believers may seem vulnerable, but that doesn’t mean they are weak. In fact, we are the strongest group on earth, as we fight the devil and his iniquity workers with goodness not evil. Just look at the Beatitudes, in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. His descriptions of those who are heavenly blessed all seem to be weak, passive and very vulnerable, but in fact they show an active strength clothed in humility, peace and godliness.
Listen to this Beatitude from Jesus: ‘Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.’ (Matt. 5:5) He didn’t mean blessed are the physically or spiritually weak, but blessed are those who have humbled themselves before the Lord God Jehovah! And to be truly humble, one must have a strong spirit, because by nature humans are not created as beacons of humility, especially in this age of greed, selfishness and advantage taking.
As ‘Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles has said: “Meekness is strong, not weak; active, not passive; courageous, not timid; restrained, not excessive; modest, not self-aggrandizing; and gracious, not brash.’ In other words, to be vulnerable means to not be afraid of being human, of living for Christ.
Now, the next quote says: ‘We have to let go of who we think we should be and embrace what is.’ I don’t know about that nuh. We should certainly live in the present, but the important question is what’s our present life like, is it intertwined with Christ, or is it just running loose and lustful like the world? Remember, God has a plan for each and every life He creates, and if we’re not living in His will for our lives then we’re on the wrong side of the fence. The truth of the matter here is that we should first ascertain from our heavenly Father His will for our life, then put it into action, not do what we think we should in our own strength, or meekly (negative use) follow the world.
And Cousin Sol wisely warns in Proverbs: ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct (make straight) thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear (reverence) the Lord, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel (body), and marrow (strength) to thy bones.’ (Prov. 3:5-8) Yes friends, it’s only when we buy into God’s plan for our lives that we truly blossom and are able to reach our destiny.
And the last quote tells us: ‘In order for the light to shine so brightly, the darkness must be present.’ I guess there’s truth to that statement for we cannot discern light unless darkness is first present. That brings us to Jesus, who is the light of the world. He said it Himself: ‘I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.’ (John 8:12)
Oh my people, isn’t that wonderful? It surely is! Jesus came to earth so that we could have the option of eternal life in the light of His heavenly Father and not merely the option of succumbing to the darkness and evil of Lucifer, the fallen angel, and ending up in hellfire and damnation with him. Unfortunately though, that darkness is covering our world right now with an overwhelming black cloud of sin and ungodliness, and it’s only as we accept Jesus and His bright shining light that the darkness of our world will lessen, for darkness is inherently evil, while light shows up goodness and godliness.
And what better way to end today than with the words of John the Revelator, as he saw the new Jerusalem coming down from heaven in his vision. He joyfully declares: (yesss!!!) ‘And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.’ (Rev. 21:3-4)
What a marvelous, bright and shining day that will be my fellow saints, when the very presence of God will be with us, His redeemed people. And from thence, He will forever dwell with us in the eternal state of a life without pain and sorrow, just joy and gladness in His shining light. So, let’s wake up and reach for that glorious goal nuh my brethren! Much LOVE!
…oh when the saints go marching…I want to be in their number…oh when the saints go marching in…
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20 Aug 2022
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a better tomorrow, aspires to inspire us, dance like nobody's watching, fear is all around us, fear not, health to thy navel, holy spirit, if there be any wicked way in me, in all thy ways acknowledge him, know my anxious thoughts, know my heart, lead me in the way everlasting, learn from your mistakes, let not your heart be troubled, lie down and die, live like it's heaven on earth, living for Jesus - the only way to go, looking unto Jesus, LOVE, love like you've never been hurt, marrow to thy bones, never be scared, no rest for the wicked, overcome fear by faith in Jesus, search me O God, self-examination, sing like no one's listening, spiritual peace, staring us straight in the eye, the abundant life, the author and finisher of our faith, the joy set before him, the unexamined life is not worth living, tired and worn out, Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, try me, when life gives us lemons make lemonade
Psalm 139: 23. Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my (anxious) thoughts:
Saturday, oh blessed Saturday! Where we can laze about and do as we want. No alarm clocks, running to the baby-sitter or day care with the children and then facing the constant traffic jams that have become a normal part of today’s commute to work! No wonder we LOVE Saturday! And with all of that to do five days a week, it’s not surprising that so many of us are tired and worn out physically, emotionally and spiritually.
But not all of us can sleep in on Saturdays. The ole fella still has to be up and about the Lord’s business, figuring out something to say about the quotes that our friend Anselm sent us this past week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. Ah Lord eh! No rest for the wicked. (smile) But I can’t really complain because the Lord usually helps me with that task since He’s allotted it to me, and He always gives us the tools to do the work He requires. So Lord, I ask you now to give me those tools, let your Holy Spirit lead and guide me to write sensible stuff today that will not only serve to open the eyes and hearts of our readers, but even more importantly, praise and glorify your holy name. Amen!
And the first quote goes off with a bang! ‘The big lesson in life, baby, is never be scared of anyone or anything.’ Now that’s wonderful advice, but not so easy to put into action, since nowadays fear is all around us. Fear of disease, fear of fraudulent operators, fear of economic failure, fear of natural disasters, fear of government actions, fear of church brethren, and all of that leads to fear of life itself. Yes friends, everywhere we turn these days, fear seems to be staring us straight in the eye. But fear can be overcome through faith in Christ Jesus. Yes, that’s a guaranteed fact. Oh, we’ll always feel it, but with Jesus in our corner, it won’t get us down or cripple us like it’s doing so many people today.
One of Jesus’ favourite statements was ‘Fear not!’ And I guess it’s only right to quote two of His most famous sayings on the subject. Listen to this first one. ‘Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.’ (John 14:27) Yes friends, when we have true peace, fear cannot invade our souls or bodies. And the true source of real peace is Christ Himself! No one or nothing else can give you the kind of uplifting, spiritual peace that He offers; the peace that conquers fear.
Now listen to Him again. ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) There you have it! With Jesus and His Holy Spirit in your life, you have the peace of God living right there within you, so there’s no need to fear anything, because your Lord and Saviour has already overcome the evil world and all its tricks and trade. But for good measure, (smile) here’s one more scripture that as we said yesterday ought to be continually in our mind’s eye. These famous words of Bruh Paul to Timothy. ‘For God hath not given us a spirit of fear; but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound (disciplined) mind.’ (2 Tim. 1:7)
Ah mih people, the only way to numb fear is by having Jesus Christ in our lives, and then sincerely accepting what He tells us. But that doesn’t come easily or overnight, which leads us to this next quote: ‘The unexamined life is not worth living.’ Now that’s gospel truth right there my brethren! We simply cannot live a life without examining it, to see what kind of life we’re living. And I guess the best way to begin doing that is to by following Bruh David’s example in Psalm 139, where he pleads: ‘Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my (anxious) thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.’ (Ps. 139: 23-24)
Oh friends, how refreshing and renewing is self-examination! Especially when we do it with God’s help. It shows up the things we need to drop, and the places we need to improve. But we need to take it seriously and do what the Lord shows us, or what we know needs to be done. And it helps when we go to the Lord with sincere sentiments like Bruh David does in Psalm 51: ‘Create in me a clean heart, O God: and renew a right (steadfast) spirit within me.’ (Ps. 51:10) The Lord will never turn us away with those kinds of sincere sentiments in our hearts.
That brings us to this next quote which advises: ‘Turn your wounds into wisdom.’ And it does make sense to let our hurts teach us a wiser way to live. It’s basically learning from our mistakes. And that’s exactly what successful people do, for if you don’t learn from your errors, you will continue making the same mistakes and thus getting the same hurtful and wounding results.
And how do we do that? I believe this advice from Cousin Sol in Proverbs makes a good start. He says: ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct (make straight) thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear (reverence) the Lord, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel (body), and marrow (strength) to thy bones.’ (Prov. 3:5-8) Yuh know friends, if you must choose one passage of scripture to remember, one that encompasses all you need to know, that’s it right there! Once you have the basic knowledge of scripture in your hearts and souls, that’s all you really need to live by.
And that segues very nicely into our next quote, which offers great advice: ‘Don’t settle for what life gives you; make life better and build something.’ Ah mih bredrin, with Jesus in our lives, that’s exactly what He expects of us! When life gives us lemons, He expects us to take them and make lemonade. (smile) That means to improve on whatever we are given. Don’t just sit there and accept life’s handouts without any thought of making them better. Unfortunately though, that’s just what many of us do. Life hands us misfortunes and instead of trying to build something better on them, we simply accept them, and do the proverbial thing, lie down and die.
But when you’re follower of Jesus, that’s not acceptable. He expects us to be always improving, always learning, always persevering to become more like Him. Look at the hand that He was dealt when He came to earth nuh. One of persecution, rejection, and abnormal suffering, what I like to term ‘sufferation’ Most of us would have gone crazy and run away. But He stood up and faced it all, obviously with the help of His heavenly Father, and turned the whole world upside down, an upheaval from which it still hasn’t recovered two thousand years later, and never will!
And as the Good Book reminds us, He is the example we all must follow. ‘Looking unto Jesus the author (originator) and finisher (perfector) of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.’ (Heb.12:2) So whatever life slings at us, we must let Jesus help us to take it and make it better. That brings us to our last quote: ‘Sing like no one’s listening, LOVE like you’ve never been hurt, dance like nobody’s watching, and live like it’s heaven on earth.’
Oh friends, that’s the abundant life, and it’s just how God intended for us to live! But nowadays, in this fallen and sinful world we can only live it if we’ve received Jesus as Lord and Saviour, and keep Him first and foremost in our hearts minds, bodies and souls! That’s the kind of life Jesus died for us to have. He said very clearly. ‘I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.’ (John 10:10b) So, the long and short of the story friends, is that to do all those things our quotes tell us, we must be true and strong followers of Christ Jesus! Anything less than that will not cut it. End of story! Much LOVE!
…living for Jesus…that’s the ONLY way to go…
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26 Jul 2022
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: accomplish your divine will, alive and kicking, all the upright in heart shall follow it, allowing us to see another beautiful day, be not wise in thine own eyes, but God gave the increase, do as I say not as I do, enmity and strife amongst each other, fear the Lord and depart from evil, God calls the shots not us, God is the Boss, hurry, I am the beloved of god, I have planted and Apollos watered, if any man among you, it shall be health to thy navel, judgement shall return unto the righteous, let him become a fool, let no man deceive himself, let no man glory in men, LOVE, marrow to thy bones, obey God and leave all the consequences to him, our names are nit in the obits, seemeth to be wise in this world, share His love with the world, the amazing hope of salvation, the breath of life, the lies deceits of the enemy, the Lord knoweth the thoughts of man, the Lord will not cast off his people, the sacrificial death of Jesus, the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, worry
1 Corinthians 3:18. Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world (age), let him become a fool, that he may be wise.
Glory be! It’s Tuesday, and we are alive and kicking, thanks to God’s goodness and mercies that are new every day! Wow! Our names are not in the obits like so many others! Now that calls for some thanks and praise, doesn’t it? For sure! So please pray with me.
‘Dear heavenly father, with all of our souls, bodies, hearts and minds, we thank You for allowing us to see another beautiful day on planet earth. We know that it’s only through Your amazing goodness and mercy that it has happened, and it means You have more work for us to do down here. So please lead and guide us today, and every day that You give us the breath of life, to enable us to successfully accomplish your divine will, because that’s all that really matters. This we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen!’
Ah mih people, please don’t ever doubt that we worship a most wonderful, merciful and good God, and it’s only through His awesome grace and mercy that we’re still breathing and have the amazing hope of salvation through the sacrificial death of His Son Jesus Christ. Some of us might think otherwise, how come He’s so good, when we suffer pain and sorrow and we don’t get what we want, when we want it?
But let’s remember that God is not there to just give us our selfish desires, if and when we please, but instead, we are here to do His divine bidding, to follow His will, be that as it may, even down to sacrificing our lives or the lives of others, if He so desires! Let’s get it straight; He is the Creator, and we are the created. He is the Boss and we are His servants, or children, or whatever you choose to call us. That means He calls the shots, not us!
And until we get that fact straight in our minds, the devil will always be able to lead us astray with his many lies, deceits and disinformation. We were made to honour and revere God, not for God to play doting grandfather to us. It’s amusing, but also sad, that we expect our children to obey our every wish, but don’t think we need to give the same obedience to our heavenly Father. As the ole people would say, ‘do so ain’t like so, do as I say, but not as I do.’ Yes, the rules pertain to everybody else… but us. (smile)
That leads us to these wise words of Bruh Paul to the church at Corinth when they were fighting over whom to belong to, Paul or Apollos. ‘Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world (age), let him become a fool, that he may be wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, he taketh the wise in their own craftiness. And again, The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain (futile). Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are yours. Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours; And ye are Christ’s; and Christ is God’s.’ (1 Cor. 3:18-23)
Ah mih people, yuh see how it easy it is for contention to spring up in the church? As Bruh Paul said earlier on. ‘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.’ (1 Cor. 3:6-7) So it does us no good to be contending over who is the most important or wisest, because God gave them all to us to help us in our earthly journey, but in the long run, it is He Himself who produces whatever fruit we bear.
The world however is quite taken up with individual importance and wisdom, which the Lord considers total foolishness, as Bruh Paul says above. And Cousin Sol said it so perfectly long before that, when he declared: ‘Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear (reverence) the Lord, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel (body), and marrow (strength) to thy bones.’ (Prov. 3:7-8)
That’s the truth in spades my brethren! This lust for worldly wisdom and importance is driving us crazy, causing us to strive for unimportant things like wealth, power and glory, and in the fallout, enmity and strife amongst each other. That’s not what the Lord wants for us my people. He desires us to get along, as one body in Christ Jesus, doing His holy will, bringing the unbeliever from the darkness of Satan to the bright, shining and empowering light of Christ. But we can’t do that if we are fighting amongst each other for power and position, or totally neglecting the will of God.
And the psalmist wraps it all up nicely with these revealing words from Psalm 94. ‘The Lord knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are vanity (futile). Blessed is the man whom thou chastenest (instructs), O Lord, and teachest him out of thy law; That thou mayest give him rest (relief) from the days of adversity, until the pit be digged for the wicked. For the Lord will not cast off (abandon) his people, neither will he forsake his inheritance. But judgement shall return unto righteousness: and all the upright in heart shall follow it.’ (Ps. 94:11-15)
Yes friends, the Lord God Jehovah is a father unto us, and just like we LOVE, instruct, chasten and have the good of our children at heart, so does He have our welfare at heart. And just like we set a path for our children and enable them to walk it, so will He do whatever is necessary to keep us walking the straight and narrow path that leads through Jesus to Him. He’s playing the same role that we play as earthly parents. It’s as simple as that.
Now, for those of us who are sincerely endeavouring to stay on the straight and narrow path, let’s go home declaring (yeahhh!!!) our Tuesday mantra, letting the whole world know to whom we belong, lock, stock and barrel. As one voice: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
And having made that declaration, it now behooves us to go out and share that amazing LOVE and friendship of Christ with others, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…obey God…and leave all the consequences to Him… (Uncle Charles – Dr Charles Stanley)
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8
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