19 Aug 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a city set on a hill cannot be hid, a damning statement, above all we can ask or imagine, answer for wasting valuable time, be about the Father's business, before men, Christ's saints, Christlike character, compassion of Jesus, do the work, exceeding abundantly, forgiveness, gace, glorify your father in heaven, God can do, good for nothing, halfway home, hands on the plough, let your light so shine, light a candle, like the idle rich, living a life that glorifies Christ, lost their saltiness, LOVE, mercy, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, not looking back, of him who sent me, pussyfooting around, put it under a bushel, put our money where our mouth is, raise up our faith, salt has lost it's savour, Sermon on the Mount, shining lights of Christianity, thank God, the breath of life, the light of the world, the night cometh, they may see your good works, to a glorious future with Jesus, trod under foot of men, turbulent times, waiting for a slowpoke, Wednesday Wail, when no man can work, while it is day, winning souls for christ, ye are the salt of the earth
John 9:4. I must do the work of him that sent me, while it is day; the night cometh, when no man can work.
And then it was Wednesday… ahready? Yes, already! (smile) Unfortunately, it seems that the days are not waiting for a slowpoke like me, they are going about the Father’s business, as they are meant to. And believe me, they are indicating in scowling disapproval, that I should also be about His business instead of pussyfooting around like the idle rich! Yeh, when even the days are disapproving of your behaviour, then you must know that things are bad with you. (smile)
So what’s a poor man like me to do under those circumstances eh? I guess I ought to do like Jesus said when, on the Sabbath day, He healed the man that was blind from birth. ‘I must do the work of him that sent me, while it is day; the night cometh, when no man can work.’ (John 9:4) Ah my brothers and sisters in Christ, we should indeed do the work of Him who sent us, Jesus Christ, while we have the time, for there will eventually come a time when we cannot work, through death or Christ’s return.
And then, we’ll all have to answer for the valuable time we wasted in doing everything else, besides winning souls for Christ. Yes friends, that’s our basic job down here on earth; to live a life that’s so reminiscent of Christ, that others will desire to follow Him. But if we’re living in darkness, spiritual darkness that is, we can’t do that job successfully. We have to believe and act as Jesus said: ‘As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.’ (John 9:5)
And that’s no lie! When Jesus was here on the earth in the physical form of man, He was indeed the light of the world, but once He returned to heaven, then we, His believers and followers became the light of the world. As He said so purposefully in the Sermon on the Mount. ‘Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle (lamp), and put it under a bushel (basket), but on a candlestick (lampstand); and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.’ (Matt. 5:14-15)
So it’s not just my imagination (smile) that we ought to be bright shining lights of Christianity in a dark and evil world, Jesus said it very clearly and boldly to all and sundry. And furthermore, He exhorts us with heartfelt passion: ‘Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.’ (Matt. 5:16) Oh precious people of God, we cannot get away from that exhortation because it’s our very purpose for being in the world: living a life that glorifies our heavenly Creator.
And I don’t know if there’s ever been a time in man’s history that we’ve ever needed Christians, believers in Christ to stand up and be counted more than we currently do. Yes friends, in these seemingly last and very troubled times, we desperately need to show our mettle, our true Christlike character and nature, so that we can be encouraging beacons of light for those who don’t know Christ or are not very strong in their faith. There is no doubt my brethren, that this is the time for which we who are currently here were made for. And it’s ever so important that in the fear and darkness that’s hovering over our world, that we believers stand forth as lights of the world and salt of the earth!
Yes, Jesus also did desire us to be salty, that is to have qualities that are refreshing, effervescent, flavourful, preserving and healing; all the many things that salt are good for and used for in our society. He puts it thus: ‘Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour (flavour), wherewith (by what) shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.’ (Matt. 5:13) Wow! What a damning statement from our leader!
And it seems He knew what He was talking about, because right now in these very trying and turbulent times, many of His saints have apparently lost their saltiness, not being very refreshing, preservative, effervescent or otherwise and are of no earthly use to the kingdom! Now that doesn’t speak very well of us my people, neither does it reflect very well on our Lord and Saviour, since we are His ambassadors, His representatives down here.
So please, can I implore us to step up to the plate, for while we’re alive, there’s always hope, and let’s do better than we’re currently doing nuh. Look at what Jesus did for us, and is still doing; stuff that we can never repay! So let’s raise up our faith and put our money and faith and action where our mouths are nuh; in being the salt of the earth and the light of the world as Jesus desires, so that we can be of some real use on our planet and not just idly taking up and wasting valuable space. (smile)
Remember, it’s all for Jesus! For our Lord and Saviour who sacrificed His all for us, so that we could be reconciled to the Father, our dastardly deeds, our sins forgiven and eternal life in heaven ours for the taking. And all He’s asking is that we stand up strong now and let the world see the LOVE, the mercy, grace, forgiveness and compassion that’s inherent in being a believer. Is that so much to ask? I don’t think so.
Now let’s go home declaring (awright!) our Wednesday Wail, telling the world of our most enviable position in Christ Jesus. In strong voice with sincere and fearless hearts. ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’
And I do believe, like Bruh Paul says, that our God can ‘do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think.’ (Eph. 3:20) So if we stand strong and endure to the end, He will indeed boggle our human imaginations with His awesome divine power when we get to heaven. Much LOVE!
…time for Christ’s saints…to get real salty…and to let their lights shine real bright…
27 Jul 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a very present help in trouble, anxieties, asaph, behold the works of the Lord, call upon me, come short in obedience, compliance to your word, delivers them from their troubles, evil, exalted in the earth, faithfully promised, forgiving, get up and give thanks, God is our refuge and strength, grace, gracious God, havoc, heal our land, heal our wounded souls, his calming influence, humble ourselves, humble servants, I will deliver thee, in the day of trouble, Jehovah Rapha, keepeth all his bones, maketh wars to cease, merciful, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, no guarantees of safety, offer unto God thanksgiving, our many flaws and weaknesses, pay thy vows unto the Most High, redeemeth the soul of his servants, repenetance, restrictions been lifted, rocking and rolling, Selah, sincerely seek thy face, slay the wicked, still loves us, the afflictions of the righteous, the believer's strength, the god of jacob is our refuge, the God who heals, the joy of the Lord, the Lord hears, the One who made us, the righteous cry, the sons of Korah, the stroms of life, thou shalt glorify me, to hear and answer our prayers, turn from our evil ways, under his mighty wings, we run for refuge and comfort, we will not fear, wise guidance and direction, worldwide strife and protests
Psalm 50:15. And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.
Oh friends, please sing with me: ‘Monday morning is come, so we rocking and rolling; That’s how we do it, when Monday morning comes. We get up and give thanks, and prepare to enjoy the day, whatever the weather… whatever the circumstances. That’s because, the One who made us…and still LOVES us, despite our many flaws and weaknesses, is looking out, for all those who call Him Lord and Saviour!
Under His mighty wings, we run for refuge and comfort, when the storms of life assail us, assured that He will calm them, and heal our wounded souls, because all storms respond to His calming influence. So that’s why we sing: Is Monday morning…and we rocking and rolling. Yes, is Monday morning, and we rocking and rolling…we rocking and rolling…forever…with Jesus… yes forever…with Jesus…!’
Ah mih people, I do hope that you all like my li’l ditty! (smile) And it’s how we ought to greet Mondays – with joy and great promise… As Asaph the psalmist says: ‘Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the Most High: And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.’ (Ps. 50:14-15) It could not get any clearer and more straightforward than that my friends.
So since we’ve offered thanksgiving, now let’s call upon the Lord in our time of very serious trouble. Let’s take our concerns to the heavenly throne, where Jesus, our intercessor is waiting to plead our case before the Father. In confident though humble voices and spirits, let’s declare (steups!) our Monday Morning Battle Hymn.
‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You that this Monday morning we’re alive, and hopefully haven’t contracted the virus that’s causing havoc around our world. And our anxieties have been recently deepened because some restrictions have been lifted in the lockdown, so more of us are going out to work now without any guarantees of safety. Then to complicate matters Father, suddenly, and unexpectedly, just like the virus, worldwide strife and protests have also struck us in this sad time of pandemic, and we don’t have a clue how to handle either situation properly.
Mass confusion is currently prevailing in our world, and we desperately need your help to solve both problems, as You are the ONLY One with the power and insight to successfully handle them. Heavenly Father, we admit that we have all sinned and seriously come short in obedience and compliance to Your Word, but we know that You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, and You have faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face.
That’s why we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading with You to give us, ordinary folks, as well as our leaders, employers and medical personnel, wise guidance and direction. Please show us how to successfully handle these scourges that are currently plaguing Your beautiful earth. Please help our leaders to wisely quell the strife and protests, thus bringing unity, peaceful consensus and real improvement in the areas that are now sadly lacking. Please help the scientists to also find a positive solution, a sure antidote to the virus as quickly as possible. And for those who have already contracted the virus, or been injured in the strife, we pray that You will ease their suffering and heal them.
Father, please show them Your awesome grace and mercy, and keep Your promise that You’ll hear our prayer, forgive us, and heal our land if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again we say: Amen!’
And now that we’ve placed our problems in Jesus’ capable hands, let’s get some further reassurance from the Lord’s Word. Hear the sons of Korah. ‘God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble (abundantly available help). Therefore will we not fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried away into the midst (the heart) of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.’ (Ps. 46:1-3)
And if you don’t believe the sons of Korah, then listen to Bruh David nuh. ‘The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles. The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit (crushed in spirit). Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them all. He keepeth all his bones: not one of them is broken. Evil shall slay the wicked: and they that hate the righteous shall be desolate (condemned or held guilty). The Lord redeemeth the soul of his servants: and none of them that trust in him shall be desolate (condemned).’ (Ps. 34:17-22)
Oh Bubba! How much more assurance do we need before we put our absolute trust in Almighty God eh? But just in case we do need some more, (smile) let’s hear from the sons of Korah again. ‘Come behold the works of the Lord, what desolations he hath made in the earth. He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; he burneth the chariot in the fire. Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.’ (Ps. 46:8-11)
Now with all of that confidence and assurance ringing in our hearts and souls, let’s go out and enjoy the day the Lord has made, as we do good and worthwhile ambassadorial work in His holy and wonderful name! Much LOVE!
…the joy of the Lord…is the believer’s unfailing strength…
24 Jul 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a sacrifice to God, a sweet smelling savour, all manner of conversation, aroma, as dear children, as your Father is merciful, at the revelation of Jesus, be merciful, be sober, be ye holy, bring backsliders back, confusion, do good, followers of God, gird up the loins of your mind, grace, havoc, hope for nothing in return, hope to the end for grace, in ignorance, intoxication, justified, lead the way, lend, lockdown, Love your enemies, made righteous, mercy, new mercies and compassions, not conforming to former lusts, obedient children, offering prayer, omnipotent help, outward conduct, pandemic, peace, persoanl discipline, physical distancing, physical labour, racial riots, redeemed, sanctified, serious setbacks, smell the coffee, stand strong and steadfast, strife, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, the blood of Jesus Christ, the longed for weekend, the ordinary workingman, the saints of Christ, the saints of God, the undeserving children of men, troubled times, trusting faith, unexpected storm, wake up, walk in LOVE, wearing masks, wise guidance, your reward shall be great
Ephesians 5:1. Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;
Welcome to another beautiful day on God’s great earth my fellow saints in Christ! And grace and mercy and peace to you from our heavenly Father as we spend the day doing His wonderful work, redeemed, sanctified, justified and made righteous by the awesome blood of His Son Jesus Christ!
Mama Yo! What a bountiful privilege! And all God’s children said a loud, proud and grateful: “Praise the Lord our great and merciful God, who sends us new mercies and compassions every single day! Who looks after the undeserving children of men! Bless His holy name! Amen!’
And I know it’s Friday, the day so many of us look forward to, when our weekly tasks will end for two lousy days, but nonetheless it fills us with happiness. (smile) Look at it this way nuh, the Lord worked six days to create the universe, we’re only working five, which means we’re one up, that should lessen our antipathy to the work week. (smile)
But let’s hear what the ordinary working man has to say for himself on this bright and sunshiny Friday. And he gushes today: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday and that longed for weekend is here! It was the best week for a while now. It wasn’t so hot, and some rain fell and mih body getting used again to the hard, physical labour in the slave master fiery furnace so nicely called a machine shop, so it not hurting so much again! Thank God for that oui, because it not easy to do all the things we need to do, at the speed and consistency we need to do it when every move yuh make hurts like hell!
I just hope to heaven though that the pandemic and strife business would get settled and be over with, because they still casting a dark cloud over mih life and the world. Yeh, is good to see that they easing the lockdown, but how many people going to pay serious attention to wearing masks and physical distancing when everything gets more open eh? That is the big question, especially since those seem to be the only options we currently have for holding the virus in some sorta check.
Ah Lord eh! Some of us real dense and stupid yes! We still mouthing off about freedom and trampling of rights, but when we go out there not careful, what yuh think going to happen eh? The same blooming foolishness that happening in the U.S. now! But what do I know eh? I’m just a lowly, ordinary workingman, giving thanks to God for the li’l weekend rest ah going to get come this evening.’
Ah friends, the ordinary workingman claims not to know a whole lot, but he does know more than a lot of the so-called upper class and educated people who are not taking our current situation as seriously as they ought to. But that’s where we, the saints of Christ come in; offering prayer and assurance that things will get better, we just don’t know when, and these things will pass, when our God decides it’s time. So let’s go to Him now nuh, corporately, through our Friday Chant, with sincere hearts and plead for His awesome help.
All together now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. It’s been pretty rough…some of it from work, as many of us are now back to work in varied ways, but most of our anxiety still comes from all the confusion and havoc that the Covid-19 virus still causing. We not accustomed to that Lord, and it really telling on us. And now, on top of all that, we have racial riots and protests to put up with. Oh Lord, yuh know we can’t handle it on our own and desperately need Your help.
Yes, heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat both the virus and the unrest in our streets. So Lord, we sincerely ask you today to give the governments and those involved in the forefront of this serious and unexpected storm, the sure and wise guidance to handle the situation properly, with the least amount of loss to life and property as possible. And please help those of us who must go out to work amidst all the confusion, to be responsible and to stay safe, so that we can avoid any more serious setbacks.
And Lord, we fervently pray that You’ll use this situation to also bring a lot of backsliders back to your fold, show them the error of their ways. It’s also a good opportunity to introduce a whole new flock, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion because of the way we, your faithful believers, handle the situation. Yes Lord, please use this pandemic and the unrest in the streets as a means of restoring faith in You, so that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
And now that we’ve prayed with sincere hearts my people, what is our next move eh? To put into action what we said above, re God’s faithful people handling the situation with wisdom and compassion. And how do we do that? Like Bruh Paul told the church at Ephesus when he expounded on the ways of the believer. ‘Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; And walk in LOVE, as Christ also hath LOVED us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savour (aroma).’ (Eph. 5:1-2)
And how do we do all of that? As Jesus said: ‘But LOVE ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again (in return); and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.’ (Luke 6:35-36)
And if Jesus words don’t appeal to you, then try these from Peter nuh, as he talks about the call to Christian dedication. ‘Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind (prepare your mind for action), be sober, and hope to the end for grace (rest your mind fully upon the grace) that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;’ (1 Pet. 1:13)
And the scholars explain that verse thus: ‘1:13. The exhortation to set one’s hope involves an inward resolution. Gird up the loins of your mind: The imagery is that of personal discipline and outward conduct. Be sober: (Gr. nephontes): Be free of every sort of mental and spiritual intoxication. The revelation of Jesus Christ is the Second advent when Jesus returns to earth to set up His kingdom.’
Consequently, our behaviour should be: ‘As obedient children, not fashioning (conforming) yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance. But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation (conduct); Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.’ (1 Pet. 1:14-16)
And for our information, that scripture is found in Leviticus 11:44-45; 19:2; and 20:7. Not only one place, but several, which means the Lord was very serious about it. So please, let’s take holiness seriously too, as we go about doing God’s work each and every day! Much LOVE!
…in troubled times…the saints of God lead the way…
15 Jul 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a broken heart, a contrite spirit, a fatted calf, a good read, allow the Holy Spirit to control us, attentive, be acceptable in thy sight, be sarcastic, belittle you, better is a dinner of herbs, blinding people's thoughts, born of God, break into your thoughts, courteous, cutoffs, defences, endure to the end, faith, glory hallelujah, grace, halfway home, hands on the plough, hatred, hope love, I'm not turning back, icy silences, informative, kind, knoweth god, let the words of my mouth, listening love, love covereth all sins, LOVE is of God, LOVE one another, love that listens, mercy, missing real life, monologues, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, my redeemer, not opinionated, now for now decisions, O Lord my strength, objective, One Year Book of Bible promises, overconfidence, patient, Ruth Harms Calkin, shame you, show forth thy praise, sinful nature, stirreth up strifes, surface talk, than a stalled ox and hatred therewith, the best life possible, the breath of life, the greatest is love, the meditation of my heart, the most valuable attribute of God, the sacrifices of God, thou desirest not sacrifice, to a glorious future with Jesus, trite spiritual answers, turbulent times, turn you off, undivided attention, unselfish, We can do all things through Christ, Wednesday Wail, where love is, with the Lord's help
Psalm 19:14. Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength (my rock), and my redeemer.
Well friends, Wednesday has opened bright and sparkling and promises to be a hot one, not like the last two days that have been comparatively cool. But it’s summer and that’s what we expect…until it gets too hot. (smile) And this morning we have something to share from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin that will break down all the walls and barriers and impediments that we have built up around ourselves and those with whom we interact. It’s appropriately titled, ‘LISTENING LOVE!’
Yeh mih people, it’s LOVE that listens. So please pray with me: ‘Listening LOVE is one of the greatest gifts we can give our mates, our families, and our friends. Too often we settle for surface talk or icy silences, for monologues or cutoffs, for defences. What a difference when we follow the principles of Listening LOVE. Listening LOVE is courteous. It says… I will strive not to interrupt or outguess you. I will not finish your sentences or break into your thoughts. Listening LOVE is attentive. It says… I will give you my undivided attention. I will not turn you off or leave you isolated.
Listening LOVE is patient. It says… I will not rush you or insist on a right-now conclusion. Listening LOVE is kind. It says… I will not shame you with sarcastic retorts. I will not belittle you. Listening LOVE is objective. It says… I will try to be informative rather than opinionated. I will not attempt to think for you. Listening LOVE is unselfish. It says… I will guard against overconfidence and trite “spiritual” answers. Listening LOVE is prayerful. It says… I will pray for insight, for wisdom, and for gentle reactions.’
Oh my people, Listening LOVE is indeed difficult to practice when all the problems of the world are weighing us down! But please pray that there will be Listening LOVE between the duchess and I today, (smile) because I’ve already turned on the A/C after it was off for the last two days, and that’s usually a source of contention between us. But although practicing Listening LOVE is difficult, it is indeed possible, if we took our time and thought about our reactions before we engaged them. Unfortunately though, that’s also a difficult thing in this new and modern world of speed and now for now decision making.
And I guess that’s why Bruh David prayed this solemn prayer at the end of Psalm 19, which is our Bit and also the Bible Verse associated with today’s writing. ‘Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength (my rock), and my redeemer.’ Yes my brethren, it’s only with the Lord’s help that we can truly practice Listening LOVE! The world and the sinful nature that exists within us do not allow us to be patient, thoughtful, kind, courteous and all the other things that Listening LOVE requires.
I guess that’s why Cousin Sol also wisely proclaimed: ‘Hatred stirreth up strifes: but LOVE covereth all sins.’ (Prov. 12:19) And again why he later on declared (yeahhh!) ‘Better is a dinner of herbs (vegetables) where LOVE is, than a stalled ox (fatted calf) and hatred therewith.’ (Prov. 15:17) Oh my people, LOVE is such a wonderful thing! And it ought to be, since it’s the most valuable attribute of our magnanimous and magnificent God! ‘And now abideth faith, hope, LOVE, these three; but the greatest of these is LOVE.’ (1 Cor. 13:13)
But since the fall of man, when sin entered our lives, true LOVE seems to be so difficult for us to practice. And the great efforts of the fallen angel Lucifer, now his satanic majesty, against it doesn’t help us in the least. Satan hates LOVE because he knows that LOVE comes from God. and he doesn’t like it one bit when John says: ‘Beloved, let us LOVE one another: for LOVE is of God; and every one that LOVETH is born of God, and knoweth God.’ (1 John 4:7)
But as true believers in Christ, that is exactly what we are called to do! All the greed and selfishness of the world should not be showing up in the sons and daughters of Almighty God. Sadly, however, it is showing up to a great extent because we are still too contaminated by the ways of the world and we are not seeking the righteousness of God as much as we ought to. And a very good example of how we ought to behave is given by Bruh David when the prophet Nathan eventually accosted him re his adultery with Bathsheba and the premeditated murder of her husband Uriah.
He prayed: ‘O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall show forth thy praise. For thou desirest not sacrifice; else I would give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.’ (Ps. 51) Yeh friends, our sin nature is responsible for a lot of stuff. But please listen to these wise words from the scholars.
‘Sin nature: 51:5. When the word sin appears in the singular, it usually denotes the sin nature of humanity. This sin nature, which everyone possesses, influences us to sin and is the source of lust. It negatively affects people’s minds (Rom. 1:28). Illustration: The sin nature is partially responsible for blinding people’s thoughts and understanding, so that they cannot perceive spiritual things (1 Cor. 2:14). Although our sin nature continues to operate within us, it was judged when Christ died (Rom. 6:6-7).
Application: Until Christ returns, we must live in the strength of the new man, to overcome the sinful desires arising from the sin nature. We cannot eradicate our sin nature, but we can allow the Holy Spirit to control us so that we do not give in to temptation. (First Ref. Gen. 6:5; Primary Ref. Rom. 3; cf. Rom. 5:12).’
Ah friends, life can be somewhat difficult at times, but with Christ in us, and we in Him… Oh we can do any and all things through His most wonderful strength and grace and mercy. So please, let’s not fall or falter by anything evil that comes against us. And please read those scriptures the scholars outlined above, because they are so educational and uplifting, and do we ever need uplifting stuff in these turbulent times! Now let’s go home declaring (oh yeahhh!) our Wednesday Wail, letting all and sundry know of our serious, sincere and most excellent position in Christ Jesus!
All together now: ‘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 to the end, we WILL experience that glorious future with Christ! Much LOVE!
…if you don’t know Christ…you’re missing real life…the best life possible…
P.S. Sorry it’s late, but I had to go out the street and do some time sensitive stuff first. But it’s a good read. (smile) Much LOVE!
22 Jun 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: antidote, back-breaking labour, causing havoc, Christ is the answer, cursed, day of woe, direction, down through the ages, eat and drink and enjoy, Eliab, entitled, everlasting life, forgive us, good and comely, grace, guarantees of safety, heal our land, hear our prayer, humble servants, I have refused him, in turmoil, inequitable soicety, it is his portion, Jehovah Rapha, joy, look not on his countenance, LOVE, man looketh on the outward appearance, mass confusion, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, pandemic, peace, peaceful repose, praise Your Holy Name, protests, reflect what's in our hearts, sincere repentanceguidance, the gift of God, the good of all his labour, the height of his stature, the Lord looketh on the heart, the Lord searches our hearts, the nature of the political beast, turn from our evil ways, two-faced, under the sun, virus, who art in heaven, whomsoever believes, wisdom, worldwide strife
1 Samuel 16:7b. for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.
Monday, oh Monday…thou day of woe! Poor Monday, it’s been hated, resented and cursed down through the ages for something it has no control over; being the first day of our work week. But yuh know what, any other day, a day by any other name, which hailed the beginning of five days of back breaking labour (smile) would have been met with the same amount of disparagement and scorn that’s been heaped on Monday. Yeh friends, anything that disturbs our peaceful repose is disliked by our soft, lazy, think we’re entitled and inequitable society.
No doubt many of us are glad that we don’t have to go to work in these dangerous and treacherous times, but then too, we won’t enjoy the fruits of our labour if we don’t labour. Remember Cousin Sol’s words of infinite wisdom: ‘Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely (fitting) for one to eat and drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun (in which he toils) all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion… this is the gift of God.’ (Eccl. 5:18; 19b)
So to keep the motor of the 24-7 society continually running, as it needs must do in these modern times, somebody or bodies must go out and stoke it. We haven’t built a self-stoking engine yet. (smile) Even those fueled by batteries or electricity, have to be occasionally recharged. And sadly, a lot of us who are being hailed as front-line heroes, are not seeing comparative rewards in our paycheques, but instead are losing valuable family time, as well as on the job benefits. Some of our leaders are being two-faced. But what to do eh, it’s the nature of the political beast?
I’ll tell you what we can do: we can pray for them; pray to our great and mighty God for them, as well as ourselves. It’s what the Lord is waiting for us to do, for He can’t answer our prayers if we don’t pray them. So as one strong voice, with sincere hearts, let’s call out to Him right now nuh, invoking our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, asking for His mercy and grace in the worldwide problems that we’re now facing.
‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You that this Monday morning we’re alive, and hopefully haven’t contracted the virus that’s causing havoc around our world. And our anxieties have been recently deepened because some restrictions have been lifted in the lockdown, so more of us are going out to work now without any guarantees of safety.
Then to complicate matters Father, suddenly, and unexpectedly, just like the virus, worldwide strife and protests have also struck us in this sad time of pandemic, and we don’t have a clue how to handle either situation properly. Mass confusion is currently prevailing in our world, and we desperately need your help to solve both problems, as You are the ONLY One with the power and insight to successfully handle them.
Heavenly Father, we admit that we have all sinned and seriously come short in obedience and compliance to Your Word, but we know that You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, and You have faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. That’s why we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading with You to give us, ordinary folks, as well as our leaders, employers and medical personnel, wise guidance and direction.
Please show us how to successfully handle these scourges that are currently plaguing Your beautiful earth. Please help our leaders to wisely quell the strife and protests, and the scientists to find a positive solution, a sure antidote to the virus as quickly as possible. And for those who have already contracted the virus, or been injured in the strife, we pray that You will ease their suffering and heal them.
Father, please show them Your awesome grace and mercy, and keep Your promise that You’ll hear our prayer, forgive us, and heal our land if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again we say: Amen!’
Oh my people, if enough of us, that means plenty of us, sincerely pray along those lines, as well as repent of our evil ways and do better, our heavenly Father will indeed keep His promise. He did it several times for Israel, so why won’t He do it for us too eh? But remember, the Lord doesn’t only listen to what comes out of our mouths, for like the Pharisees and other leaders of Jesus’ day, what we speak, often doesn’t truly reflect what’s in our hearts.
That’s why the Lord said to Samuel when He sent him to anoint one of Jesse’s sons as the new king of Israel and the good-looking son Eliab stood before Him and Samuel figured he had to be the one. ‘Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused (rejected ) him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.’ (1 Sam. 16:7)
Yes friends, until the Lord searches our hearts and sees true repentance and true willingness to change our evil ways, our societies will be forever troubled and in turmoil. Now the Lord saw our need and sacrificed His only Son Jesus Christ to help us, that whomsoever believed in Him would have everlasting life. So He’s done His part. The ball is now in our court. We need to accept Christ and receive His peace, joy and LOVE, and show the world that HE IS THE ANSWER…THE ONLY ANSWER… Much LOVE!
…if the created is wise…he will turn to the Creator for help…
19 Jun 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a guiding light, be responsible, bring backsliders back to your fold, calls men to accountability, compassionrestoring faith in you, defeat the virus, each one help one, each one teach one, energy level, enthusiasm, ever-faithful God, fearful and anxious world, Friday chant, grin and bear it, hard labour, have seen a great light, have the light of life, His only begotten Son, I am the light of the world, in him was life, in the land of the shadow of death, in the name of, Jesus Christ, lock down, LOVE, mercy, omnipotent help, our Lord and Saviour, pandemic, physical distancing, racial protest, realm of prayer, revelation of God, serious setbacks, stand strong and steadfast, stay safe, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, that have walked in darkness, the darkness comprehended it not, the forefront, the life was the light of men, the light shineth in darkness, the people, they that dwell, this serious storm, understanding of the truth, unrest in our streets, upon them hath the light shined, waiting with bated breath, wise guidance
Isaiah 9:2. The people that have walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.
And then all those bright, sunshiny days, morphed into this beautiful one called Friday! And everyone’s thoughts are turned to what this June weekend might hold for us, as individuals, as well as our whole frustrated, discontented, weary, sick, fearful and anxious world! But there is no need to fear my friends, for our great and ever-faithful God has given us an incredible promise: ‘The people that have walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.’
Yeh friends, the Lord promised us a guiding light to lead us out of the darkness and He kept that promise when He sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ into the world to show us what He was truly like, and that we would be able to follow the light and come to a sure understanding of the truth found in His Word. But unfortunately, as John says: ‘In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended (apprehended) it not.’ (John 1:4-5)
Now is it ever so sad, that back then, only a minority of mankind appreciated the light and took advantage of what it had to offer. And the same unfortunate situation still exists to this day. But hear this explanation from the scholars nuh: ‘1:4-5. Life…light: See also 8:12; 9:5; 11:25; 14:6. (Please check out those references.) In John’s writings, life represents salvation and deliverance through Christ, and light denotes Jesus’ revelation of God which calls men to accountability.’
Exactly what I’ve been saying: not enough of us have accepted Jesus’ revelation of God, neither His most wonderful offer of salvation and deliverance! No wonder our world is in such a calamitous state! Jesus said it quite plainly 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) So the ONLY way out is for us to accept what God has to offer on a worldwide scale, not trying to run Him out of our society, as we are presently trying to do. Let’s remember that nuh! Sermon done! (smile)
And since it’s Friday, I know many of you are waiting with bated breath to hear what the ordinary workingman has to say. So let’s check it out nuh. As always, he begins with ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday and the weekend is here!’ But these days his enthusiasm and energy level don’t seem as high as they were before the pandemic shut down everything. ‘Yeh, thank God for the two days off from work! But what we going to do with them eh? Is summer time now, and half the place still lock down, and yuh still have to practice social or physical distancing, or whatever yuh choose to call it!
Steups! And not even that, but I really don’t want to go anywhere because mih body tired, ah still can’t catch mihself, still not gotten back accustomed to the hard labour in the slave master work! Oh what a difference two months away from it makes! And this pandemic thing, as well as the new racial protest and them, doh look like they going away any time soon nuh.
Ah Lord eh! In all mih born days, ah never see the world in such a mess yet nuh! But what a small man like me going to do about all that eh? Not a hell of a lot. Just grin and bear it as best as I can and pray that it all get better sooner than later! And is a good thing I still have the weekends to look forward to yes, so I can get away from it all. Thank the Lord for that oui!’
Ah friends, I know that many of us are experiencing the same kind of frustration and feel like the ordinary workingman does, because we are ordinary working people without a whole lotta say in the big affairs of the society, and the powers that be don’t pay a lot of attention to us, unless we rise up together and make our voices heard. And that ofttimes meets with unfortunate circumstances as the current racial protests are showing. But there’s one place where NO ONE can stop or hold us back…and that’s in the realm of prayer!
Calls to Almighty God are only monitored by Him and He desires to hear from all of us. So let’s get busy and pray nuh; call out to God for mercy and deliverance through our Friday Chant. As one loud and sincere voice: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. It’s been pretty rough…some of it from work, as many of us are now back to work in varied ways, but most of our anxiety still comes from all the confusion and havoc that the Covid-19 virus still causing. We not accustomed to that Lord, and it really telling on us. And now, on top of all that, we have racial riots and protests to put up with.
Oh Lord, yuh know we can’t handle it on our own and desperately need Your help. Yes, heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat both the virus and the unrest in our streets. So Lord, we sincerely ask you today to give the governments and those involved in the forefront of this serious and unexpected storm, the sure and wise guidance to handle the situation properly, with the least amount of loss to life and property as possible. And please help those of us who must go out to work amidst all the confusion, to be responsible and to stay safe, so that we can avoid any more serious setbacks.
And Lord, we fervently pray that You’ll use this situation to also bring a lot of backsliders back to your fold, show them the error of their ways. It’s also a good opportunity to introduce a whole new flock, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion because of the way we, your faithful believers, handle the situation. Yes Lord, please use this pandemic and the unrest in the streets as a means of restoring faith in You, so that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
Now, like faithful believers, let’s go and do whatever little we can do to help the situation! Much LOVE!
…each one teach one…each one help one…
15 Jun 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a word to the wise is sufficient, antidote, be not proud, beauty of holiness, chaos, come short in obedience, confusion, fear, for His goodness and mercy, forgiving, free will, give ear, give glory to the Lord, grace, gracious, guarantees of safety, havoc, he cause darkness, he who has ears to hear, hear our prayer, hear ye, humble servants, in the palms of his hands, judge the people righteously, let him hear, like white on rice, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, need your help, pandemic, power and insight, powerful wings, Praise the Lord, prayer, safely ensconced, sincere hearts, tete a tete, the Lord hath spoken, to the children of men, under the shelter of
Jeremiah 13:15. Hear ye, and give ear, be not proud: for the Lord hath spoken.
Monday, Monday, Monday… Chuh! Another blooming day to go to work! And as if going to work wasn’t bad enough after such a relaxing weekend, we have to go amidst all the confusion and chaos caused by the Covid-19 virus and a host of disgruntled and dissatisfied protesters in the street. Ah Lord eh! What a way we world in a sad mess!
But friends, the news isn’t all bad! No, there’s some good stuff too – namely that the Creator and Controller of this great universe, Almighty God Himself…Yahweh…Jehovah – whatever name you choose – has His people safely ensconced in the palms of His mighty hands, under the shelter of His powerful wings! And all His children declared a loud and proud: ‘Praise the Lord for His goodness and mercy to the children of men!’
But the problem we encounter though, is that with our free will it behooves us to come to Him, He won’t simply conscript us like soldiers in time of war. We have to join His army of our own free will, and once we do that, we then need to stick ever so closely to Him, like white on rice. (smile) He will keep and protect us. That’s His ever-faithful promise, and all the storms that are currently besetting us will pass, as they all do – just in His time.
So there’s no need to fear what’s currently happening in our world, although we must be concerned and do our part to help reshape life in a more equitable and Christian manner. And one of the ways we can ALL participate in that reshaping is through prayer; the most powerful weapon in the universe! It’s the method of communication that the Lord, in His eternal wisdom, devised for us to bring our problems and concerns to Him, as well as to just have friendly chats and tete-`a-tetes with Him.
So as one strong voice, with sincere hearts, let’s call out to Him right now nuh, invoking our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, asking for His mercy and grace in the worldwide problems that we’re now facing. ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You that this Monday morning we’re alive, and hopefully haven’t contracted the virus that’s causing havoc around our world. And our anxieties have been recently deepened because some restrictions have been lifted in the lockdown, so more of us are going out to work now without any guarantees of safety.
Then to complicate matters Father, suddenly, and unexpectedly, just like the virus, worldwide strife and protests have also struck us in this sad time of pandemic, and we don’t have a clue how to handle either situation properly. Mass confusion is currently prevailing in our world, and we desperately need your help to solve both problems, as You are the ONLY One with the power and insight to successfully handle them.
Heavenly Father, we admit that we have all sinned and seriously come short in obedience and compliance to Your Word, but we know that You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, and You have faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. That’s why we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading with You to give us, ordinary folks, as well as our leaders, employers and medical personnel, wise guidance and direction.
Please show us how to successfully handle these scourges that are currently plaguing Your beautiful earth. Please help our leaders to wisely quell the strife and protests, and the scientists to find a positive solution, a sure antidote to the virus as quickly as possible. And for those who have already contracted the virus, or been injured in the strife, we pray that You will ease their suffering and heal them.
Father, please show them Your awesome grace and mercy, and keep Your promise that You’ll hear our prayer, forgive us, and heal our land if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again we say: Amen!’
And my people, if our hearts were truly sincere in that prayer, then we know that our faithful God has begun working on the solution to our problems, and they will be eventually conquered, but in His time, when He decides that His purpose for allowing it to happen has been achieved. Until then, we just have to hope and pray and stay strong in His LOVE! And living the way He desires just might help us too. (smile)
For interest sake, I just opened the Good Book and discovered these inspiring words uttered by the prophet Jeremiah to his people Israel when they were in a period of disobedience. ‘Hear ye, and give ear, be not proud: for the Lord hath spoken. Give glory to the Lord your God, before he cause darkness. And before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains, and while ye look for light, he turn it into the shadow of death, and make it gross darkness.’ (Jer. 13:15-16) Now wise people hearing those words would certainly take some time to ponder their lives and see if they are doing what the prophet advises. For who knows if that is one of the reasons our world is currently so dark, so overrun by darkness?
And the scholars add this interesting explanation: ‘13:15-17. A third illustration concerns a weary traveller in danger of being overtaken by the falling darkness of night. Such was Judah. It must renounce all pride and give God His rightful glory before the final darkness of national catastrophe engulfs it.’
And the psalmist also had these wise words of advice: ‘Give (ascribe) unto the Lord, O ye kindreds of the people, give unto the Lord glory and strength. Give (ascribe) unto the Lord the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts. O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: fear (tremble) before him all the earth. Say among the heathen (nations) that the Lord reigneth: the world also shall be (is firmly) established that it shall not be moved (shaken): he shall judge the people righteously.’ (Ps. 96:7-10)
What more can I say eh friends and neighbours? Just that a word to the wise is usually sufficient, and he who has ears to hear, let him hear! Much LOVE!
…obey God…and all will be well…
28 Apr 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a bunch of ingrates, a God of love, benefit you later, bought and paid for, calamitous times, Christ died to save us, Christ's precious blood, Covid-19, darkness of the world, death, disgrace, disobedient, don't you love me anymore, endureth forever, eternal life, faithful God, fallen angel Lucifer, flowery nature, forgiveness, friendship, glorify the Lord, God of unlimited chances, good days, grace, he will save us, his mercy and truth, holy and righteous deity, hurry, immeasurable love, long life, lost forever, love me so continually, loving-kindess, mercy, northern climes, on the cross at Calvary, One Year Book of Bible promises, Praise the Lord, purposeful fellowship, redemption, Ruth Harms Calkin, sacrificially shed, salvation, shame, share His love, sin, sinful, social distancing, something you do now, the beloved of God, the grave error of my question, the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our king, the Lord is our lawgiver, the prince of darkness, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, usurp his creations, wisdom, worry, Wrong Question, zillion dollar question
Isaiah 33:22. For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he will save us.
And it’s a cloudy, drizzly Tuesday morning…Thank the Lord for Life and some spring blessing, so that in these cold and dry northern climes, His earth can return to it its wonderful green and flowery nature! Yeh friends, whatever the situations or circumstances in our individual lives and our overall world, we need to give our heavenly Father much thanks and praise for His LOVING-kindness and mercy and grace to us undeserving children of men. For without those benefits, we’d be lost forever in a state of sin, shame, disgrace and eventual death!
Now here’s a poem from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin that brings home that very truth. It’s most appropriately titled ‘Wrong Question.’ Please pray with me: ‘My faithful God I see afresh this morning The grave error of my question “Don’t You LOVE me anymore?” I ought always to ask instead “How can You LOVE me so continually With such immeasurable LOVE?” Now that my fellow saints in Christ is the zillion dollar question – how can a holy, just and righteous Deity LOVE a bunch of ingrates so much eh?
Well the answer is really quite simple: our God is also a God of LOVE, of mercy, of grace and of forgiveness, and above all, we are His own creation, created to have purposeful fellowship and communion with Him, so it’s obvious that He can’t simply throw us away even though we’re rather disobedient and sinful! Remember too that He’s also the God of second, third, fourth and unlimited chances. So it would be against His very nature to just cast us off without any form of help. As Bruh Paul told Timothy: ‘If we believe not (are faithless), yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.’ (2 Tim. 2:13)
Yes friends, the Lord cannot deny what He is, or go against His natural attributes. And remember too, He promised to redeem mankind after He kicked our forefathers Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden for their unfaithfulness. So it’s finally come right around full circle: the Lord’s kept His word and gave us a Saviour in Christ Jesus, redemption and salvation bought and paid for by His precious blood shed sacrificially on the cross at Calvary. So alright, I said it was simple, and to the Lord it was and is; though to us it might seem rather convoluted. (smile)
But precious people, all we need to know and believe is that Christ died to save us, and true belief in Him and His righteous cause will lead us to eternal life. And a li’l while ago, when I opened the Good Book, what positive and proactive and promising scripture do you think it opened at eh? Hear the voice of the prophet Isaiah: ‘For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he will save us.’ Mama Mia! That says it all my brethren! The Lord God of Israel is all of those things to us, and we need to badly acknowledge Him as them if we want to see long life and good days.
Unfortunately though, our world has turned away from God and has made the prince of darkness it’s new leader. But friends, lemme tell you a li’l ‘secrat’ nuh; the Lord is not going to allow the fallen angel Lucifer to usurp His earthly creation, just like He didn’t allow him to usurp His heavenly kingdom. So for all of those who want to put their trust in Satan now, it will be a sad day for them when that day of judgement arrives, as it most certainly will. The Good Book says it quite plainly: ‘And it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgement:’ (Heb. 9:27)
And then it will be too late to change our minds, so please, please, I beg of us, let’s disassociate ourselves from the darkness of the world nuh, and instead seek the light, the bright, shining and everlasting light of Jesus, for in Him will we find the true life, the true reason for living! And I just got a good allegory for that: like we doing social distancing now for Covid-19, the same way we ought to do social distancing from Satan! Oh yes, I likes it! It’s rather appropriate! Let’s keep our social distance from this world and all it’s sinful temptations and cling to that Master vine that’s Jesus, so that crapaud don’t smoke we pipe when the end times come.
That’s wisdom at its highest mih people, so please let’s joyfully embrace it now nuh. As Sister Joyce (Joyce Meyer) defines wisdom: something you do now that will benefit you later on down the road of life! And believe me, clinging to Jesus is the most beneficial thing we can ever do in this life! And the scripture verses for the poem above is also rather apropos for today’s discussion. They’re taken from, or rather all of Psalm 117 – ‘The truth of the Lord endureth forever.’
So please declare (steups!) with me: ‘O Praise (glorify) the Lord, all ye nations (gentiles): praise (glorify) him, all ye people. For his merciful (LOVING) kindness is great towards us: and the truth of the Lord endureth forever. Praise (glorify) ye the Lord.’ (Ps. 117:1-2) And it couldn’t be said, any sweeter or shorter than that nuh mih bredrin. So let’s do it right now nuh; praise and glorify our magnificent and magnanimous God by declaring (Steups! Like I have to go back to school and learn to spell declare (yeah!) and its derivations yes!) our Tuesday Mantra.
So in strong voice, with sincere hearts: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’ And though the Coronavirus and social distancing might bridle us a bit, they certainly won’t stop us from sharing Christ’s LOVE and friendship with the many others who desperately need it in these calamitous times! Much LOVE!
…it’s definitely foolish…for one created…to trust another created…more than their common Creator…
15 Apr 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: advanced doctrine, battle howling storm, blazing sun, carnal, carnal minds, Christians, cold, competitiveness, Coronavirus, craggy, dissensions, divide and conquer, divisions, elementary Christian instruction, envying and strife, eyes fixed straight ahead, fed you with milk, fleshly, forgiveness, fortunate mountain, gifts of god, glory hallelujah, grace, halfway home, hang on tightly to Jesus, hindering the growth of, James Dillet Freeman, jealousy, let us rejoice and be glad in it, look far out across the world, mercy, mish-mash world, nature, newborn babes, not looking back, one family, one fold, only lie still, out of their darkness, peaceful, proactive, productive, salt and light, slavation, snow upon the mountain, social media, start eating solid food, stop drinking milk, the breath, the church at Corinth, the Holy Spirit, this is the day the Lord has made, those in Christ, to a glorious future with Jesus, To Thine Own Self, uncomfortable, walk as men, warlike proportions, warm-breasted Earth, Wednesday Wail, ye are yet carnal
1 Corinthians 3:3. For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying and strife, and divisions (dissensions), are ye not carnal (fleshly), and walk as men (according to man).
Oh my people, this is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it nuh! Yes, that’s the wisest plan we can have for this awesome day! God didn’t make it just for making it sake, but so that His children could enjoy it with all His other wonders, like nature, salvation, grace, mercy, forgiveness, etc. etc. Yeah! And God made us just for this particular time otherwise we wouldn’t be here. That also means we have work to do on His behalf. So let’s get to it nuh and stop dilly dallying for we know not how much time we have left, and come the judgement day, when He asks why we did so li’l with our lives, what good excuse are we going to have eh? The Coronavirus will only cover a small part. (smile)
And today I want to share a simple but very insightful poem that recently came my way. The author is James Dillet Freeman, and the poem, titled ‘To Thine Own Self’ comes from his book ‘Angels Sing in Me: The James Dillet Freeman Memorial Book’ (Unity Books, 2004). ‘To Thine Own Self,’ admirably points out a couple of serious flaws in our earthly living; that of comparing oneself to others, and wishing for what they have, not considering what gifts God gave them, because He gave us all different gifts, nor how they achieved whatever they possess, the problems they might have gone through, or whether they have even sold their soul to the devil or some such unwise thing.
So please read with me: ‘The lake looked at the mountain, and thought: O fortunate mountain, rising so high, while I must lie so low. You look far out across the world and take part in many interesting happenings, while I can only lie still. How I wish I were a mountain! The mountain looked at the lake, and thought: O fortunate lake, lying so close to the warm-breasted Earth while I loom here craggy, cold, and uncomfortable. You are always so peaceful, while I am constantly having to battle howling storm and blazing sun. How I wish I were a lake! All the time, quietly, the mountain was coming down in silver streams to run into the lake, and the lake was rising as silver mists to fall as snow upon the mountain.’
Ah friends, in today’s fast paced, mish mash world so much of that kind of envious behaviour is so prevalent that it causes us serious problems, especially when we put all the foolishness of social media on top of our natural jealousy. But our God wasn’t foolish when He made us. Just like the mountain supplies fresh water to the lake, from the mists and snow that the lake provides to the mountain, the Lord made us to be complementary to each other, not competitive against each other and even worse, raising the level of that competitiveness to warlike proportions of envy and jealousy.
A lot of our world problems stem directly from that unwarranted situation; within societies, as well as between nations. We all aspire to be at the top of the heap, and too often do whatever it takes to get us there. Yes, that might be the way of unbelievers and their unbelieving world, but it is definitely not what Christ desires in His followers, as Bruh Paul so clearly stated in his first missive to the church at Corinth, re carnal minds hindering the growth of the Holy Spirit within us.
‘And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. I have fed you with milk, and not with meat (solid food): for hitherto (until now) ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying and strife, and divisions (dissensions), are ye not carnal (fleshly), and walk as men (according to man).’ (1 Cor. 3:1-3) And that’s the gospel truth re the situation in many churches and amongst too many believers today!
Hear the scholars nuh. ‘3:1-3.I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: In the case of newborns babes, this would be natural and to be expected (1 Pet. 2:2). But it is embarrassing at this stage in their development. Milk, figuratively stands for elementary Christian instruction, and meat refers to advanced doctrine. Carnal (lit. “fleshly”). The warfare between the flesh and the spirit receives continual emphasis in Paul’s writings (cf. Rom. 7:14-8:13; Gal. 5:17). The factions that have destroyed the unity in Corinth indicate that these believers were not walking by the Spirit, but were allowing the flesh to direct their behaviour.’
And that friends is exactly what’s happening in our churches today. Those who should be mature believers by now, are still in elementary classes, still walking as worldly men and not spiritual believers. And we can’t walk both after the dictates of men as well as of the Spirit. Thus there is way too much dissension and division amongst the different denominations, and even more so amongst their members. Christ’s church is full of way, way too much envying and strife my brethren!
Remember, we are supposed to be all a part of ONE body, Christ’s church, and if one part is sick or diseased, just like the human body, the rest of it will also suffer problems. We are allowing the enemy to divide and conquer us by being so divided and envious and strife-filled. That means we’re acting just like the world. But remember too that we’re supposed to be in the world, not behave like the world. We are supposed to be the salt and the light, be proactive and productive and show the unbeliever the light, take them out of their darkness. But how can we do that, when so many of us are still living in unproductive darkness eh?
Let’s rise up then and live like Bruh Paul advised the Galatians nuh: ‘This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other…’ (Gal. 5:16-17a) Yes friends, the flesh and Spirit pull us in opposite directions, but when we know the Word, and with the Spirit’s help, adhere to it, then we become fruitful Christians, salt and light, as Jesus desires of us.
So let’s endeavour to get rid of all the dissensions and divisions nuh, and just live peacefully with each other, because we are all ONE family, ONE fold of Almighty God. We won’t always agree, but because we are all of God, we can get along with His help. Now let’s go home sincerely declaring (right on!) our Wednesday Wail, letting all and sundry know of our most enviable position in Christ Jesus.
As one now: ‘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 will that future ever be glorious, if we hang on tightly to that plough with Jesus! Much LOVE!
…it’s time…for those in Christ…to stop drinking milk…and start eating solid food…
13 Apr 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a revolution, according to His abundant mercy, Amen, an antidote, blessed be the God, Corona virus, covenant, deliverance, faith, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, fearful, guidance and direction, hath begotten us again, havoc, healing, hope, live for Jesus, LOVE, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, more abundatly, preordained plan, prisoners of hope, repentance, salvation, scourge, suffering, the christian's destiny, the presence of God, the resurrection of Christ, they might have life, unto a lively hope
1 Peter 1:3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively (living) hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
And the Easter Celebrations continue, though somewhat muted because of the Coronavirus pandemic. But do you think anything at all can stop we believers from celebrating Christ’s revolutionary resurrection that assures us of life after earthly death? No way Jose! Yes, we couldn’t get together physically like we are accustomed doing at such a joyful time, but it in no way lessens the importance and awesome promise of the amazing event and consequently celebrations and church services were held in all forms and fashions, with the help of our modern technology.
But unfortunately, so far, that modern technology has not been able to come up with an answer for the virus that’s causing us so much devastation, grief and heartache. But also, as true believers and followers of Christ, whom we believe can do anything, we keep hoping and praying and believing that a cure, an antidote, will soon be found. Yes friends, we are indeed ‘prisoners of hope.’ (Zech. 9:12) And speaking about ‘prisoners of hope,’ I recently read an article by one Joshua Ryan Butler with that exact title, and he had a rather interesting characterization of ‘hope.’
He says: ‘Hope is a revolution, a powerful presence that breaks in from the future and transforms today. Jesus’ arrival has brought God’s destiny for humanity crashing into the now – an explosion of life into a world marked by the death. It changes everything.’ And is that ever so true! Jesus’ birth, death and resurrection certainly catapulted us into the future, showing us God’s great, preordained plan for our lives. And there is no better verse of scripture that describes that situation than these words of Peter:
‘Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively (living) hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.’ And has Jesus’ resurrection ever given us hope for the future, for salvation! The scholars explain: ‘1:3-2:10. The Christian’s destiny: salvation. Salvation means “deliverance.” Peter’s view of salvation is ultimate salvation, that is, when the believer will be rescued from this world into the presence of God.’
But remember what Joshua said in his definition of ‘hope’ above? It ‘breaks in from the future and transforms today.’ That means we don’t have to wait till we die to enjoy the benefits that Jesus died for us to have, but can begin enjoying heaven down here on earth right now! As Jesus said: ‘The thief cometh not but (except) to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.’ (John 10:10) And that’s the beauty of the Christian faith and life! We also have a now, as well as a then.
The only problem is all of that doesn’t just happen automatically; there are some requirements, the first one being Jesus’ directive to Nicodemus: ‘Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again (from above), he cannot see the kingdom of God…. Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.’ (John 3:3, 5) So if we don’t meet that requirement, then we can forget about salvation through Jesus. Then we have to believe in Jesus as the Way, the Truth, the Light and the Life. All of which gives us hope that leads and morphs into faith, which makes us strong and keeps us going. Glory to God, my fellow believers!
And now that we’ve said all that, let’s turn to the operating system of the situation; the real work horse of the Christian life, the ultimate means of communication with our Saviour and Father; prayer! Yes friends, prayer is our very life blood! Without it we’re just lost and alone; but with it, in God’s company, we’re powerful and NEVER alone! So let’s talk to our Father right now about our greatest need at this current time nuh; relief from the Covid-19 pandemic. Yes, in strong voice, with confident humility (smile) let’s cry out to Him for help through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn.
All together now: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You that this Easter Monday morning we’re alive, and hopefully haven’t contracted the virus that’s causing havoc around our world. Despite the crucial lockdown, those of us considered essential, still have go to work, and we’re somewhat fearful, because we have no idea, how, when and where the virus might strike.
Heavenly Father, we admit that we have all sinned and seriously come short in obedience and compliance to Your Word, but we know that You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, and You have faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. That’s why we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading with You to give us, ordinary folks, as well as our leaders, employers and medical personnel, wise guidance and direction.
Please show us how to successfully handle this scourge that’s plaguing the earth, and help the scientists to find a positive solution, a sure antidote to it as quickly as possible. And for those who have already contracted the virus, we pray that You will ease their suffering and heal them Father. Show them Your awesome grace and mercy, and keep Your promise that You’ll hear our prayer, forgive us, and heal our land if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again we say: Amen!’
And now that we’ve fulfilled one aspect of our role in our covenant, our partnership with God, let’s go out and do the rest, basically living for Jesus, with supreme hope and faith in our hearts. And as He has faithfully promised, the Father will do the parts we can’t do. Much LOVE!
…without living hope…and strong faith…one can’t live for Jesus…
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