22 Mar 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: abundance, actions, alive and kicking, behaviour, blessings, blind, brand of Christianity, broken, Christ's Church, Christian attributes, church at Laodicea, compassionate heart, compromise, creativity, curse, diligence, divine protection, excellence, faith, favour, fence sitting, God's great earth, help, I know thy works, in the name of Jesus, kicking butt for Jesus, lack of genuine faith, lackadaisical, lacklustre, lazy, legalistic approach, LOVE Revolution, lukewarm, medicinal qualities, miserable, naked, nausea, need nothing, negative word, neither cold nor hot, no passion, obits, poor, positive outlook, pray, promotion, Revelation, rich, scared, self-control, share our blessings, spew thee out, steadfast, success, talk a good talk, thanks and praise, the things of God, the things of the world, Thursday's Blessings, volunteer, walk a good walk, wealthy, worthless, wretched, zeal
Revelation 3:15. I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert (wish you were) cold or hot.
Awright mih breddren, another wonderful day on God’s great earth is upon us! Give Him thanks and praise! And you know what? I just checked the obits and none of our names or pictures are listed there! Wow! That must mean that we’re alive, alive and kicking, alive and kicking butt for Christ! (smile) I like that.
It sounds like something we were meant to do. But are we doing it? To a certain extent yes, but definitely not as much as we ought to. The problem with our brand of Christianity these days seems to be that we are doing a lot of right things, but we are not doing them sufficiently.
You know, you can give, volunteer, help, pray, whatever, show Christian attributes, but with a lacklustre attitude, no real passion for what you’re doing. It doesn’t seem to come from the heart, but from the mind. Like I’m supposed to do so and so, so I’ll do it, but not with any real zeal; a more legalistic approach than a heart-felt one.
But Jesus calls for excellence, passion, and diligence in His followers. That reminds me of what He said to the church in Laodicea, through John’s vision in Revelation, our Bit for today. ‘I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert (wish you were) cold or hot.’
Ah friends, that’s exactly how Christ’s church is today. The zeal and passion for growing it, for enhancing Christ’s LOVE Revolution doesn’t’ seem to be present in sufficient quantity amongst its believers. We still seem to be too taken up with the matters of the world and not enough with those of heaven.
And as Jesus continues after our Bit: ‘So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew (spit, vomit) thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods (have become wealthy), and have need of nothing: and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.’ (Rev.3:16-17)
Yes my people, if we look at ourselves in truth, we will see that we are still too taken up with the things of the world and not those of God, thus Jesus’ reproach.
Listen to these explanations from the scholars. ‘3:15-16. The church is likened to lukewarm water, or as being virtually worthless. Christ says He will “spew them out,” or eject them from His company. The hot waters of nearby Hierapolis were known for their medicinal qualities, whereas Colossae was known for its cold, pure water.
But Laodicea was forced to receive water by aqueduct from other areas. By the time it arrived at Laodicea it was lukewarm and provoked nausea. The works of the Laodicean church were as worthless as the city’s lukewarm water. The description does not refer to a backslidden condition, but rather to their lack of genuine faith.’
Ah friends, although I don’t think our contributions to Christ’s church are totally useless, I do believe that they are not worthwhile enough because our faith is not strong enough. Too many of us are too scared, lazy and lackadaisical about our faith. We don’t stand up steadfast and strong enough for what we believe in.
There is too much fence sitting and compromise in our behaviour and actions. And both those things lessen the strength of anything. We talk a good talk, but we don’t walk a good enough walk.
That’s why Jesus commanded the church at Laodicea: ‘I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried (refined) in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment (garments), that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear (may not be revealed); and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.’ (Rev.3:18)
I have to chuckle there friends, because nobody can turn a phrase like Jesus, can admonish you the way He does. And the scholars have this to say about that scripture. ‘3:17-19. Laodicea was famous for its wealth, its bankers, its medical school, its popular eyesalve, and its textile industry.
Christ says that spiritually the people of the church are poor, blind, and naked. True wealth is found only in God’s grace. This church had no spiritual value (gold), virtue (white raiment), or vision (eyesalve). He urges the Laodiceans to repent of their lack of genuine faith and of spiritual understanding.’
Fellow believers in Christ, I believe that admonition of Jesus will also stand us in good stead today. Please, I implore us to stop running after the things and wealth of the world, because they will avail us nothing in the time to come. It’s time we raise the level of our faith and actions and concentrate on sincerely growing Christ’s church as personified by His LOVE Revolution. Why do you think He blessed us with our Thursday Blessings eh? So that we can lift Him up.
Now let’s declare those blessings with a sincere heart and strong belief. ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!
I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’
And if we truly believe, it, then let’s go out and share it with others as Christ desires, for a blessing is not a blessing until it’s declared. Much LOVE!
…Christ wants His followers to be either hot or cold…not in between…
08 Jan 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a branch, adrenaline, aura of love, bad seeds, be not deceived, be weary, bombarded, bright and bubbly, buffeted, carnal minded, Christ's vine, Christian brethren, confidence, deceive God, do good, don't give up, easy living, enemy's taunts, enthusiasm, eternal destruction, eternal life, faithfulness, friends, gentleness, get the ball rolling, glorious kingdom, go to work, God is not mocked, good vibrations, goodness, holy spirit, household of faith, humble servants, in due season, invincible, Jesus Christ, jobs, joy, kindness, lies, long weekends, long-suffering, LOVE, LOVE Revolution, lures of the world, meekness, miserable, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, peace, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, rest, revs our engines, salvation, self-control, sinful nature, sour, spiritual armour, spoiled, steadfast faith, steal our joy, temperance, that shall he also reap, the fruit of the spirit, this too shall pass, trust, ungodly world, useful purpose, warm bed, weary souls, well doing, well rested, whatsoever a man sows, wiles, wisdom
Galatians 6:7. Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
Okay friends, the consecutive long weekends are over now. You have to get back to working five day weeks, so let’s hope that you are well rested and churched, so that you have the wherewithal to make it through the whole week. Hope that you haven’t gotten so spoiled that you expect every week to be a short one. (smile) I know it’s very easy to get accustomed to that sort of easy living.
Anyway, it’s Monday, and regardless of the circumstances or the weather, we have to get up and go to work. So let’s roll out of the warm bed and get the ball rolling by singing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, that awesome song that revs our engines and activates our adrenaline. With some enthusiasm now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle. Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Oh friends, yuh feel the good vibrations that immediately wash over us as we sincerely declare those words? Now let’s keep those good vibes going as we hit the road. Don’t allow the bumper to bumper traffic to get to us. Let’s try and be at peace in the storm, using the perfect sense of peace that Jesus instills in us all when we become believers.
Remember that this too shall pass, because we need to be bright and bubbly when we do get to work, so we can do good things on Jesus’ behalf. We can’t afford to be sour and miserable and let the enemy steal our joy, thereby making us incapable of sowing and bearing good fruit for Christ. Thus the important warning from Bruh Paul in our Bit. ‘Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.’
Oh my people, let’s not ever fool ourselves into thinking we can deceive or outwit God. That’s impossible since He sees all and knows all. This means if we sow bad seeds then we will reap bad fruits. And we can only sow good seeds and therefore reap good fruits only if we are operating from a good spiritual place, a place with Jesus first and foremost in our hearts. As Bruh Paul continues after our Bit: ‘For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.’ (Gal.6:8)
And the scholars offer these explanations: ‘6:8. For expands the principle of verse 7 to wider application. Soweth to his flesh means to conduct oneself by the evil dictates and desires of the sinful nature, thus practicing the deeds of the flesh (5:19-21). Such a person shall…reap corruption, that is, be requited with eternal destruction. Soweth to the Spirit means to live by His enabling help in accord with the Spirit’s prompting and leading, thus cultivating the fruit of 5:22-23. Such a person shall…reap life everlasting, that is, be rewarded with eternal life.’
And I know it sounds simple, but it’s not so easy in reality, because our natural sinful nature, in conjunction with the evil lures of the world, constantly exert great pressure on us to be carnal minded. But Bruh Paul admonishes us further: ‘And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not (do not lose heart).’ (Gal.6:9) That means we have to keep on keeping on friends, don’t give up, regardless of how difficult times might be, because we will be well rewarded if we finish our race and stay strong in Christ.
‘As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.’ (Gal.6:9) So my faithful brethren, since we are to be divinely rewarded, it is essential that we seize every opportunity to do good, especially to our Christian brethren. And we’ll close with a gentle reminder of the fruit of the Spirit. (smile) ‘But the fruit of the Spirit is LOVE, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness (kindness), goodness, faith (faithfulness), Meekness, temperance (self-control): against such there is no law.’ (Gal.5:22-23)
Yes my people, let’s go out and practice that kind of stuff today nuh, because it is of Jesus, because it will help to build His LOVE Revolution, as well as bring divine rewards. Much LOVE!
…to bear good fruit…one must be a branch of Christ’s vine…
04 Nov 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: A game, a great day, a positive approach, a positive light, a very present help, agile, allow more than we can bear, almighty god, annoyed, Anselm, atone for our sins, attitude, available help, bad, begotten Son, believers, Christ's gospel, Christians, create a problem, David, deadly turmoil, desperate, dwelling within you, fear, fear God, for a better tomorrow, glory hallelujah, god, God is our refuge and strength, good, good news, helpless, highest Being, holy spirit, hope, in God's world, inspire us, Jesus Christ, Job, Joseph, little things, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, mindset, miserable, negative circumstances, omnipotent force, over think, Paul, personal testimony, problem free, prominent in our thoughts, rattle us, refuge, rejection, resources, right places, roar, Saturday, sleeping in, spreading love, strength, supple, surrender, test, the earth be removed, the Good Book, the heart of the sea, the mountains, think too much, this too shall pass, trouble, trust, understanding, walking with, wisdom, wrong choices
Psalm 46:1. God is our refuge and strength, a very present (abundantly available) help in trouble.
Saturday, oh Saturday; what a great day! Oh, let me take that back…no embellish it. Saturday is a great day -good for sleeping in, like I just did – (smile), but the real truth is that EVERY day is a great day in God’s world!
How could they not be when you have the Holy Spirit of your Creator constantly walking with and dwelling within you eh? Oh, we ought to know that just because we call ourselves Christians and have Jesus beside us all the time, that all our days will not be worry and problem free.
Unfortunately many of us supposed believers seem to think so, but if you look through the Good Book you’ll notice that some of the men and women of greatest faith and holiness, like Bruh Joseph, Bruh David, Uncle Job and Bruh Paul had more problems than some of their lesser peers, with the most important being our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
And what makes every day a great day is basically our mindset and attitude. A positive approach to life is the best. Obviously there will be some negative circumstances, but the trick is to try and consider them in a positive light; like the Lord is testing us, and this too shall pass, and He won’t allow more than we can bear.
Our God must always be prominent in our thoughts whether we are experiencing good or bad circumstances. As Job said when his whole life crumbled in mere moments, we can’t always expect good and not some bad. That’s just how life is in our fallen and sinful world.
And I have personal testimony to that this morning. And before giving it, I have to exhale a ‘Steups!’ and an ‘Ah Lord eh!’ Why? Because I just came down to my office to write the Bit, and lo and behold I saw that one of the panels in the ceiling of the office had come apart.
Obviously I was annoyed, and further annoyed when I tried to put it back together and found that I couldn’t do it by myself. I couldn’t raise my hands above my head and hold all the stuff together at the same time. Some years ago I could have done it, although it has always been a finicky job; as you fix one side, the other tends to drop out etc.
And believe me, I can’t see any reason why that particular panel fell out, except to test my resources. (smile) But am I going to let it spoil my day? Obviously not! It’s relatively a small, unimportant thing, which can stay as it is until I can get someone to help me put it back together again.
Yeh friends, too many of us allow little things to rattle us and get us off of our ‘A game’ and spoil the rest of our day. That brings us to the quotes from our friend Anselm, who aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. I only got two from him this week, don’t know what happened.
But anyway, this first one segues in quite nicely to what we’ve been talking about. ‘Don’t think too much…. you’ll create a problem that wasn’t even there in the first place.’ And that’s quite possible.
When problems befall us we tend to over think them, wondering why, what, when, wherefore and all the other questions, which only makes the current problem bigger than it ought to be.
I could have done that with the fallen bit of ceiling, but it wouldn’t have gotten me anywhere, except miserable. And it at least brought home the knowledge that I’m not as agile and supple as I used to be. (smile)
And the next quote says: ‘Sometimes the wrong choices bring us to the right places.’ I really don’t know how to view that nuh, except to think that when we make wrong choices we can end up in places so desperate and helpless, that we are forced to turn to God for help to extricate us.
And that’s why our Bit tells it like it is. ‘God is our refuge and strength, a very present (abundantly available) help in trouble.’
And all God’s people shouted a loud and grateful ‘Glory Hallelujah!’ because they know that that statement is the ultimate in truth. Yeh friends, when you belong to the most omnipotent force, the highest Being in the universe, you have no reason to fear what man can do to you.
And as the sons of Korah continue to sing their song of praise and tribute: ‘Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried 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.46:2-3)
Yeh mih people, though the earth and all therein erupt in deadly turmoil, yet we who believe in Almighty God will not be afraid. Glory to God! So total is our surrender, so strong is our faith, hope and trust in Him, that nothing will move us, except His rejection.
And we know that will NEVER happen! Not after He showed His undying LOVE and sacrificed His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ to atone for our abominable sins.
So let us go forward this Saturday morning, filled with the strength, wisdom and understanding granted us through His Holy Spirit and make it a great day, spreading LOVE and the good news of Christ’s gospel to all and sundry. That’s the way our Lord and Saviour, Jesus, desires it. Much LOVE!
…don’t fear man…but certainly fear God…
30 Oct 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: acceptance of Jesus, ambassadors of Christ, aura of love, believeth on him that sent me, bombarded, buffeted, burning coals, burning wind, Christ is Lord indeed, Christ's image, Christian brethren, condemnation, confidence, conquerors, delights, derision, disbelief, enthusiasm, everlasting life, every foe is vanquished, faith, favourite day, fight the good fight, fight traffic, forgiveness, friends, glorious kingdom, glory to God, God's goodness, godless, grace, grouchy, he that heareth my word, hope, humble servants, hypocrite, I say unto you, invincible, Jesus Christ, jobs, judged, judgement, lies, life-changing words, LOVE Revolution, LOVE to hate, mercy, miserable, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, new workweek, passed from death to life, portion to partake of, rain snares, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, representatives of Christ, rest, righteousness., salvation, servants, soldiers of the cross, spiritual armour, stand up for Jesus, steadfast faith, taunts, tempest, the enemy, the evil world, tries the righteous, trust, truth, ungodly world, useful purpose, verily verily, violence, warm cocoon, weary souls, wiles, wisdom
John 5:24. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation (judgement); but is passed from death into life.
So my people, if yesterday was Sunday, then today is our favourite day – Monday! Hn, hn! Well…it should be one of our favourite days, because it’s the beginning of a new workweek, and we don’t know what wonderful delights awaits us out in God’s great universe. (smile) But sadly, it’s become the day that many of us LOVE to hate!
And why is that eh? Possibly because it means we have to leave the nice, warm, soft cocoon of our homes and go out into the evil world and fight the traffic, Lucifer’s henchmen, and ofttimes our Christian brethren too. And if we haven’t gotten sufficient rest, relaxation and rejuvenation over the weekend, then we will be grouchy and miserable on any and every Monday morning.
However, we do have something to alleviate that Monday morning grouchiness, it’s called our Monday Morning Battle Hymn. It’s designed to raise our spirits and get us up and running, so we can go out and fight the good fight for Jesus. So let’s sing it out loud nuh, with lots of faith and hope.
As one strong choir: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Wow friends! What a difference that song makes, when we sing it with a strong sense of purpose! It does indeed lift our spirits, gets the adrenaline flowing and our motors purring like a well-oiled machine. Well then, what are we waiting for eh? Let’s get out there and give the heathen heck, in Jesus name! Show them what it means to be a real Christian, not the hypocrite kind!
And how do we do that? By modelling Jesus – sharing His LOVE, FORGIVENESS, MERCY, GRACE and whatever else it takes to wake up the unbeliever to the fact that Jesus is their ONLY HOPE of true survival in this godless and wicked world.
And how do we know that? From the words of absolute truth that Jesus spoke in our Bit. ‘Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation (judgement); but is passed from death into life.’
Ah friends, what life changing words! Thankfully we have heard Jesus’ word and believed in the One who sent Him; our heavenly Father! That’s why we shall have eternal life and shall not be judged, be condemned to Hades, like the unbelievers will. Glory to God for His goodness to the children of men!
Unfortunately though, a lot of the children of men don’t appreciate God’s goodness, therefore they continue to wallow in their wickedness and misery. And remember what Bruh David says about the state of the wicked in Psalm 11 – In the Lord put I my trust.
‘The Lord trieth (tests) the righteous: but the wicked and him that LOVETH violence his soul hateth. Upon the wicked he shall rain snares (burning coals), fire and brimstone, and a horrible tempest (a burning wind): this shall be the portion of their cup (their portion to partake of). For the righteous Lord LOVETH righteousness; his countenance doth behold the upright (the upright beholds his countenance).’ (Ps.11:5-7)
Yes my brethren, that’s what the Lord has in store for the wicked unbelievers. Let’s hope we are not being counted amongst that lot, and instead are working hard to bring that kind to wise acceptance of Jesus, for that’s a major part of our earthly duty. Please remember friends, that we are Jesus’ hands and feet here on earth, His ambassadors, the ones others look to for wise direction in matters of spiritual life and death.
So let’s get on with our tasks today like excellent, upstanding representatives of Christ nuh, not the wishy-washy, doh-care attitude that so many of us present to the world. That only hurts Christ’s image, brings derision and disbelief to His LOVE Revolution and truly makes us the hypocrites so many think we are. Much LOVE!
…stand up, stand up for Jesus…ye soldiers of the cross…till every foe is vanquished…and Christ is Lord indeed…
19 Apr 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a brand new day, a living hope, abundant mercy, adventurous, be obedient to god's will, Blessed be the God and Father, blessings, Christian's destiny, comprehend God's greatness, deliverance, eternal life, faith, finite minds, focusing on the future, forgiving nature, forsaking God's goodness, gift of salvation, glory hallelujah, glory to God, God's goodness, God-given options, halfway home, hands on the plough, hath begotten us again, imperishable, incorruptible, indestructible, inheritance, interesting, invading my heart, LOVE, mercies, miserable, morally tainted, not turning back, One Year Book of Bible promises, our Lord Jesus Christ, presence of sin, redeeming, reserved inheaven, revealed in the last time, Ruth Harms Calkin, sacrificial death, salvation, shout from the hilltops, sing and dance, So Profound, thanks and praise, the breath of life, the future, the power of God, the presence of God, the ravages of time, the resurrection of Jesus Christ, this is the day the Lord has made, truth, uncertainty, undefiled, we will rejoice and be glad in it, Wednesday Wail
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.
Welcome to Wednesday friends! It’s a brand new day with brand new mercies and blessings! Glory to God for providing us with such abundance!
In return we ought to give Him much thanks and praise, be obedient to His holy will and enjoy the day. That’s why we can all sincerely shout: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we WILL rejoice and be glad in it!’
And if we don’t follow through with that declaration, then it’s only us losing, foolishly forsaking God’s goodness. The Lord will still be in His high heaven enjoying Himself, but we will be miserable down here on planet earth.
Consequently, I want to share a poem from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin that’s titled ‘So Profound.’
And it says: ‘O God I want to sing and dance I want to shout it from the hilltops: There is absolutely nothing In my wretched past That can hinder You From redeeming my future Except my refusal to let You. Thank You for invading my heart With a truth so refreshing So magnificent So profound!’
Yeh mih people, we should be singing and dancing and giving praise each and every day that we’re alive, thankful for our wonderful God’s redeeming and forgiving nature!
And it’s surprising when we live a thankful and grateful life how interesting and adventurous are our days! We don’t sit around moping and groaning and complaining because things aren’t going our way.
But it’s surprising how many supposed believers unwisely live that miserable sort of life even with God’s goodness and mercy right at their fingertips.
And we should be especially thankful and grateful at this most important time of year when Jesus rose from the dead to allow us to have the free, God-given options of salvation and eternal life! Glory to God!
And the Bible Promises used for that poem are some verses from 1 Peter that we recently looked at, but are certainly worthy of sharing again, the first one being our Bit.
‘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.
To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you. Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time’ (1 Pet.1:3-5)
Ah mih people, our God is so great that our small, finite minds can’t even truly comprehend His greatness! And don’t talk about His LOVE! Wow! That is so out of sight that it boggles our imagination!
For before we LOVED Him, He LOVED us and sent His Son to die in our place, so that our sins could be forgiven! Now if that isn’t the ultimate in LOVE, then I don’t know what is!
Now let’s look at some explanations of our verses from the scholars. ‘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.’
‘1:3-12. The plan of salvation. Peter does not look at time from a Western perspective. The Hebrews regarded the present as so fleeting that in their language they have essentially only two tenses: past and future.’
‘1:3-5. The portrayal of salvation looks to the future. The author of salvation is portrayed as the blessed God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. The work of salvation (vs. 3-5) is described as to its effect. Hath begotten us again refers to a new stage of life that begins at salvation.
This lively hope has no element of uncertainty, for it is guaranteed by Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. The believer’s inheritance is described as incorruptible (Gr. aphtharton), imperishable or indestructible, and undefiled (i.e. morally untainted).
That fadeth not away (Gr. amaranton) means it is not subject to the ravages of time. Further it is reserved (Gr. teteremenen, perfect tense), that is, it has been preserved in the past and still is in heaven.
Kept is a present passive participle – we are secure because we are continually guarded by God, who never relaxes His vigil. Salvation here refers to final salvation, that is, deliverance from the presence of sin and into the presence of God.’
Yeh friends, the explanations might take some effort to understand, but that’s how we get to know the word. And besides, the most important fact is that it’s all for our good! So please make the effort to grasp it and hang on to it. Hope you enjoyed the lesson in Greek too. (smile)
Now let’s end by sincerely declaring our Wednesday Wail. ‘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!’
Now let’s truly live it my brethren! Much LOVE!
…the great gift of salvation…would not be possible without Jesus’ sacrificial death…and His awesome resurrection…
08 Apr 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a choice, a noble life, adhere to God's law, adversity, an adventurous life, Anselm's quotes, attitudes, blessed individuals, complaining, cringing, desired heaven, distresses, do business, dwarfs the problem, essential nature of our lives, flipping channels on the remote, for his goodness, go down to the sea, gospel truth, habit, happy, He maketh the storm to calm, hidden opportunity, inebriated, into the sauce, Jesus as our captain, Lake Ontario, loving kindness, massive waves, men would praise the Lord, miserable, mount up to heaven, mutiny, opportunities for us to grow, our christian walk, pain, personal testimony, prayer, problems, remain calm in any storm, Rochester, run errands, Saturday, shivering of the timbers, sipping something cold and frosty, situations, sleeping in, snoozing on the couch, standing strong, tailor-make, the Edmund Fitzgerald, the grace of God, the stormy wind, the waves thereof are still, the works of the Lord, to the depths
Psalm 107:29. He maketh the storm to calm, so that the waves thereof are still.
Well friends, it’s Saturday and there’s work to be done around the house, errands to run and shut in people to visit. Wow! For some of us it doesn’t seem like a day off at all, and we’re tempted to go to our place of employment, where we don’t work half as hard. (smile)
But for some blessed individuals, it’s a much easier go; just sleeping in late, snoozing on the couch, idly flipping the channels on the remote, watching golf and baseball, hockey and basketball, while sipping something cold and frothy and drowsily but sincerely saying, ‘Praise the Lord!’
Yes mih people, some do have it easier than others. But since it’s Saturday, we also have to check out some of our friend Anselm’s quotes for this week. And he does have some excellent ones this week.
Listen to this first one. ‘Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity.’ And that’s gospel truth my brethren! Problems are in fact opportunities for us to grow. Note that it’s only when we face adversity that we mature, especially in our Christian walk.
And this next quote follows on naturally. ‘We can’t escape pain; we can’t escape the essential nature of our lives. But we do have a choice. We can give in and relent, or we can fight, persevere, and create a life worth living, a noble life. Pain is a fact; our evaluation of it is a choice.’ There again friends, we can’t escape pain or problems, but we can choose how to handle them; either by cringing and complaining, or by standing strong and using the adversity to our benefit.
And this one also segues nicely to the one before. ‘You cannot tailor-make the situations in life but you can tailor-make the attitudes to fit those situations.’ It’s all about attitudes my people; our attitudes to our problems can either make or break us. And this last quote just wraps it up nicely. ‘Being miserable is a habit; being happy is a habit; and the choice is yours.’
Oh is that ever so true my fellow believers! The choice is all ours. That means if we want to have a fairly happy and peaceful life we must choose attitudes that relate to happiness and peace. Remember with Jesus as our captain, we can remain calm in any storm.
Now listen to the psalmist as he tells his story. ‘They that go down to the sea in ships; that do business in great waters; These see the works of the Lord, and his wonders in the deep. For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof. They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble.
They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wit’s end. Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses. He maketh the storm to calm, so that the waves thereof are still. Then they are glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven.’ (Ps.107:23-30)
Ah friends that reminds me of a personal testimony to that situation. One day, some thirty something years ago, I ended up on a boat with some friends and coworkers who were headed for Rochester on the American side of Lake Ontario. To cut a long story short, going across the day was sunny and beautiful and we finally got to the American side, but up to now we haven’t reached Rochester. (smile)
Through the obvious presence of the brown girl in the bottle and several strong imbibers, arguments broke out about continuing down the American coast to Rochester or returning to Toronto. The captain and owner of the boat eventually decided to come back to Toronto. This was about four o’clock in the afternoon.
But lo and behold, on our way back a serious storm rose up against us and we could barely make any headway against it. And yuh better believe that prayer, for the first time in many a day, was forthcoming from several of the inebriated imbibers. It’s a good thing I wasn’t into the sauce that day, so I was able to help the skipper, while the others were rolling around, hanging on, giving drunken orders and praying.
Now that day I learned a couple of lessons. The first one is that Lake Ontario can be very dangerous. I would be passing along the shore and see it kicking up and steups at it, saying it was nothing like the ocean I was accustomed to, and wondering how big ships like the Edmund Fitzgerald could sink and get lost in it.
But friends, that night I learned otherwise. For when the boat, I guess it was around fifteen feet long, mounted up the massive waves, I saw the good Lord in his heaven. (smile) And when it hit back down to the depths, between those waves, I felt the shivering of timbers! And that was the second lesson I learned; the actual feeling of shivering timbers. Before that night I had only read it from books.
And believe me there was even mutiny amongst the group. For when we finally reached land on the Ontario side, somewhere around Cobourg, still many miles from our starting point, we had to stop for gas. At that point, some of the more inebriated ones wanted to use their money to take a taxi home, instead of chip in for the gas.
But eventually cooler heads prevailed and we all came back together, arriving at our starting point around three o’clock in the morning, having left their around ten a.m. the previous day. And believe me, that was only a synopsis of the whole story. Like my family didn’t know where I was, hadn’t seen or heard from me for at least 20 hours, and the captain’s wife had the coast guard out looking for us.
Can’t say I haven’t led an adventurous life – but with the grace of God always surrounding me! That’s why I can totally agree with the psalmist when he declares: ‘Oh that men would praise (give thanks to) the Lord for his goodness (LOVING-kindness), to the children of men!’ (Ps.107:31) Much LOVE my brethren!
…without God…where would men be eh…so let’s give Him lots of thanks and praise nuh…and faithfully adhere to His law…
24 Jan 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: and again I say rejoice, assurance, be alive, beloved of God, body of people, Christians, come unto me, compassionate, damp, disciples, downcast, drizzly weather, droopy, ever-faithful, faithful, find rest for your souls, forlorn, friend of Jesus, gentle, glorious Tuesday, glory to God, heavy laden, highways, humble, I am meek, I will give you rest, Jesus, kind, labour, learn of me, LOVE, LOVE for one another, loving, lowly in heart, merciful, miserable, my burden is light, my yoke is easy, omnipotent, on God's great earth, on our shoulders, precious people, Rejoice in the Lord, sad, self-confidence, share His love, take my yoke upon you, the great invitation, the happiest people, the Lamb's Book of Life, the SON, the whole weight of the world, this is the day the Lord has made, Tuesday Mantra, understanding, we will be glad and rejoice in it
Philippians 4:4. Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.
Aye mih beautiful Scrip-Bit friends and family! How goes it on this glorious Tuesday eh? And believe me, in my area it’s not the physical aspect of the day that’s glorious, because though it’s dry, it’s still cloudy. Steups!
We haven’t seen the sun in over a week…but we see the Son EVERYDAY! Glory to God!
Don’t know if I’ve ever experienced that kind of damp, drizzly weather over such a long period nuh, in the middle of what’s supposed to be winter. But the important thing is that it’s a glorious day to be alive on God’s great earth!
Walking with Him is so unexpected and amazing and adventurous, that just being alive presents so many awesome possibilities. Wow!
That’s why, like the psalmist did so long ago, we can also confidently declare: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it! ‘Glory to God my believing brethren!
When I consider how faithful and LOVING, He is, my heart just overflows with LOVE for Him. Take yesterday for instance. I had to go into the city early for some blood work. The traffic was rough in some places, but not bad overall, and I got there early.
And you better believe the Lord carried me, because I parked at the front of the building and the lab is way at the back, round several twists and turns, then up on the third floor. I certainly could not have made it without His help.
Coming back out was just as bad, although I took a different route. When I finally got to the front of the building, I had to sit down for a couple of minutes and rest.
And surprisingly, getting out of Toronto was worse than getting in, with construction and road work everywhere that I travelled, and people crossing against the no-cross sign. The highways were also bad, so bad that I had to change my usual route to get home.
But as He promised, the Lord took me there safely, and brought me back home safely, though somewhat tired and aggrieved. (smile) Yes friends, just remember that our God is faithful – EVER-FAITHFUL is one of His many names!
That’s why we can do what Bruh Paul proclaims in our Bit: ‘Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.’
Yeh, precious people, if our wonderful God wasn’t faithful and kind, and LOVING, and merciful and gracious and understanding and compassionate and omnipotent, with our names written boldly in the Lamb’s Book of Life, we wouldn’t have the wherewithal to be a rejoicing body of people.
As Christians, we’re supposed to be the happiest people in the world! Hn! But you’d never believe that from the way so many of us behave sad and droopy, as though we have the whole weight of the world on our shoulders.
And that, after our Lord offered this Great Invitation: ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (from) me; for I am meek and lowly in heart (gentle and humble): and you shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt.11:28-30)
Oh friends, what’s so difficult in that to understand eh? And if you believe in Jesus at all, that should just make you break out in a big smile and have you hurrying to lay your troubles before Him!
But the problem is, I suspect, that many of us who claim to be Christians don’t truly believe in Jesus or in His many wonderful promises. Our minds may say we do, but not in our hearts, where it truly matters, else we wouldn’t be so wishy-washy and miserable and forlorn and downcast as we too often are.
Ah mih people, I’m chuckling here because that wasn’t the ‘sermon’ I had intended to write, but the Holy Spirit guided me to it. And since I’m only the messenger, an obedient one too (smile), I had to do as I was told.
Well, hopefully, there’ll be tomorrow, and I might get to preach the sermon – sorry, teach the lesson, I’ve been wanting to teach for the last two days.
Don’t worry though friends, it’s all good. The Lord is on His throne in the high heavens, and He is still in complete control of all of man’s plans and movements, so there is no need to fear.
Consequently, let’s go home declaring our Tuesday Mantra with oodles of self-confidence and assurance. As one now: ‘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!’
Oh isn’t that so beautiful and encouraging! Now let’s go and put it into action, by sharing the true, true LOVE of Jesus, as He desires of us. Much LOVE!
…by this shall all men know…that ye are my disciples…if ye have LOVE …one to another… (John 13:35)
14 Dec 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a gift, a glorious day to be alive, a glorious future with Jesus, action, alive and fruitful, associated with Jesus, brings forth much fruit, buried, Christmas, conquer sin, controlling everything for our good, crucified, dead, father in heaven, glorified, glory hallelujah, God's great earth, gospel truth, halfway home, happy life, he that abides in me, hope, I am the vine, I in him, I'm not looking back, if any man thirst, ingredients, intimate relationship, Jesus Christ, know, let him come to me and drink, LOVE, made alive, miserable, mortal bodies, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, my hands are on the plough, obey, our Lord and Saviour, out of his belly, pruning, quickened, raised, reckon, rivers of living water, someone to love, something to do, something to hope for, the breath of life, the christian experience, them's the breaks, this is the day the Lord has made, Titan, Tom Bodett, unhappy, watering, waters our hearts, we will be glad and rejoice in it, Wednesday Wail, without me ye can do nothing, ye are the branches, yield
John 15:5. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
Ah friends, it’s been one of those pretty late nights or early mornings, so the ole fella is a bit behind in his activities. (smile) Anyway, it’s a glorious day to be alive on God’s great earth.
We don’t know exactly what will happen to us, how our day will go, but we do know that our wonderful Father in heaven is controlling everything for our good. Therefore we can confidently proclaim like the psalmist: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we WILL rejoice and be glad in it.’ (Ps.118:24)
Yeh mih people, what’s the use of having a day given to you as a gift and not enjoy it eh? None whatsoever! But please remember too that the Lord expects good stuff from us in return, so let’s do our best to please Him.
And I got a bookmark from the Prostate Cancer Society yesterday with this interesting quote from Tom Bodett (1955), American author, voice actor and radio host. It says: ‘They say a person needs just three things to be truly happy in this world: someone to LOVE, something to do, and something to hope for.’
Well I don’t know if those three things will necessarily keep us happy, but I do know that without them, we’ll be very miserable and unhappy. (smile)
Yeh friends, LOVE, Action and Hope are all very necessary ingredients of a successful and happy earthly life. But sadly, a lot of people lack them all.
And the only place you’ll truly find them in all their glorious splendour is in an intimate relationship with our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, the Son of God who came to earth, was born in this Christmas season, so that we could understand more about our Creator and heavenly Father.
Now let’s declare our Wednesday Wail, which helps us keep our eyes on Jesus, who gives us the LOVE, Action and Hope we so fervently desire.
Altogether 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!’
Ah mih breddren, isn’t it just great to be associated with Jesus and all the wonderful things He has in store for us!
And what could be more invigorating and pleasing than the awesome breath of life that He has breathed into our mortal bodies eh? Nothing really! For without it, we’re nothing; nothing but a dead set of bones and flesh.
And yuh know, even with the breath of life in us, if we don’t have Jesus too, then we’re still nothing, because as He says in our Bit:‘I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.’
And that’s the gospel truth my fellow believers! In the relationship between man and God, Jesus is indeed like the vine, and we are the branches, offshoots of that vine. Just like in real vines, the branches can’t produce anything unless they are attached to the vine, likewise, we can’t do anything without being attached to Jesus.
And to make it even more lifelike, the Father tends the branches, like a real gardener, pruning and watering and doing whatever is necessary to keep the branches alive and fruitful.
Now here is an interesting explanation from the scholars re our Union with Christ. ’15:5. The uniqueness of the Christian experience results from the union of Christ and the believer. This is expressed in scripture as Christ being in the believer and the believer in Christ.
Ten times Paul uses the Greek preposition ‘sun’ (“together”) to describe this relationship. Believers were crucified (Gal.2:20), dead (Col.2:20), buried (Rom.6:4), quickened or made alive (Eph 2:1-5; Col.2:13), raised (Col.3:1; Eph.2:6), and glorified (Rom.8:17) together with Christ.
Illustration: Jesus used the image of the vine and its branches to describe His union with the believer. Application: On the basis of the union, the apostle Paul showed how the successful Christian life can be opened with four key words in Romans 6: know (v.6), reckon (v.11), yield (v.13), and obey (v.17).
The Christian can conquer sin because Christ lives in him. (Gal.2:20). (First Ref. John 7:37-38; Primary Ref. John 15:1-5; cf.1 John 5:13).’
Ah friends, I do hope those explanations helped us to better understand our relationship with Christ. And what would be a good exercise would be to check out all those scriptures. I just did that, and they are very interesting and useful.
And we’ll end with one of those inspirational scriptures. ‘In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly (heart) shall flow rivers of living water.’ (John 7:37-38)
Oh precious people, what a Titan, what a gigantic figure is our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Please, let’s show wisdom and common sense by staying attached to Him. Much LOVE!
…oh what beautiful fruit we bear…when Jesus waters our hearts…
P.S. It’s somewhat late, but it wasn’t all my fault (smile) for while writing, I also had to get up and attend to a couple of technicians who came to do some work on my new furnace. Ah Lord eh! That wasn’t connected properly in the first place. But them’s the breaks. Have a blessed day my people! Much LOVE!
13 Dec 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: anxious, awesome God, Bible promise, blessed, bounden duty, caring, character, christ jesus, Christmas, come to Christ, commercial stuff, compassion, confusion, countenance, daily walk with God, David the Psalmist, delight to please you, distraction, duty-packed day, festive season, fighting, for God so loved the world, friend of Jesus, fulfillment of life, fussing, giving, God is LOVE, God's sure promises, have everlasting life, he gave his only begotten son, His only begotten Son, holy spirit, I will be pleased, in the light of thy countenance, incomparable joy, intimate conversation, joyful praise, light, LOVE, LOVE is of God, manifested, miserable, noise, One Year Book of Bible promises, our heavenly Father, pardoned, peace, peace floods my tranquil heart, praise me joyfully, progressively dominate, propitiation for our sins, receive salvation, reconciled to God, rightous being, Ruth Harms Calkin, shape, sharing, should not perish, sincere passion, sinful soul, sins, surrender, talk with me intimately, that whosoever believes in him, the beloved of God, the people who know the joyful sound, the Spirit of God, the Spirit of love, the will to love, to follow you, true meaning of love, trust, trust me totally, Tuesday Mantra, understanding
John 3:16. For God so LOVED the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Well then friends, it’s a big Tuesday morning and we’re slowly working our way towards Christmas – just 12 more days – to that wonderful day when our Lord and Saviour Christ Jesus was born!
It is the festive season of and for LOVE; sharing, caring and giving, with the thought of Jesus uppermost in our minds, not the commercial stuff that we’re being bombarded with.
Now here is an interesting and most appropriate poem for all seasons from our One Year Book of Bible Promises, with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. It is titled ‘I Will Be Pleased.’
Please read with me: ‘Lord, this fresh early morning As I sit in our quiet living room You’ve just reminded me Through David the Psalmist That there is incomparable joy For those who delight to please You – For those who are thinking about ways To follow You more closely.
Lord, the day stretches out before me, In a few brief moments I must arouse my family And face again the noise, the distraction The hubbub of confusion. But while we are still alone Just the two of us, my Lord While Your peace floods my tranquil heart Please tell me what I can do This duty-packed day To follow you more closely.
Dearly LOVED child Praise me joyfully Talk with me intimately Trust me totally And I will be pleased.’
Ah mih people, a lot of us ask God what we can do to be more righteous in our daily walk with Him. Well there is the wise answer: Joyful praise, Intimate conversation, Total Surrender and thus total trust.
Those things on a continual basis will always please our heavenly Father, and in turn bring peace, joy and understanding into our own hearts, minds and souls. So instead of fussing and fighting, being miserable and anxious, let’s try initiating and/or integrating those things into our lives nuh. They will make such a big difference that we’ll truly be surprised.
And the Bible Promise for that poem comes from Psalm 89 – God’s sure promises to David. ‘Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O Lord in the light of thy countenance.’ (Ps.89:15) What an awesome promise my brethren, one we should hold on to with all our strength!
Now let’s turn to our wonderful Bit, an even bigger and better promise of our magnanimous God. ‘For God so LOVED the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.’
Wow friends! What a totally awesome God we serve and worship! It just blows me away to think that such a magnificent and righteous Being would care so much for me, a lowly, sinful soul, to provide a most wonderful opportunity for me to be pardoned, to receive salvation and to be reconciled to Him!
And so should all of mankind be blown away by that act of grace and unmerited favour. It shows what true LOVE is all about. Now hear this scripture from 1 John that brings home to us the true meaning of LOVE.
‘Beloved, let us LOVE one another: for LOVE is of God; and every one that LOVETH is born of God, and knoweth God. He that LOVETH not knoweth not God; for God is LOVE. In this was manifested the LOVE of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.
Herein is LOVE, not that we LOVED God, but that he LOVED us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so LOVED us, we ought also to LOVE one another.
No man hath seen God at any time. If we LOVE one another, God dwelleth in us, and his LOVE is perfected in us. Hereby we know that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.’ (1 John 4:7-13).
Ah friends, what beautiful scripture! Now here are some explanations from the scholars. ‘4:9. To grasp God’s LOVE aright, one must look to how God has demonstrated it. Here John is in total harmony with Paul (Rom.5:8).’
4:10. No human LOVE is the standard for understanding God’s great compassion, but God’s own action on man’s behalf.’
4:11-13. God’s character, through His Spirit, is to shape and progressively dominate the character of the believer. The Spirit of God imparts the will to LOVE.’
Yes friends, it’s that simple: if we don’t have the Holy Spirit of God dwelling within us, then we don’t have the power, the ability to be a truly LOVING person as defined by God’s Word. That’s why it’s our bounden duty to help others come to Christ, so that they can receive the real power and Spirit of LOVE.
Now let’s go home, declaring our Tuesday Mantra with sincere passion, in a strong and convincing voice that says we truly believe what we’re saying. (smile)
As one now: ‘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!’
Yes my people, that’s who we really are; beloved children of God and wonderful friends of Jesus! Let’s never forget that and stop being defined by what the world thinks of us.
And as we go out today, let’s also remember to share the amazing and awesome LOVE of Jesus, as we are duty bound to. Much LOVE!
…LOVE is the strongest power in the world…the ultimate fulfillment of life…
25 Jul 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a dream, adversity, attitude, attitude of prayer, aura of love, be not drunk with wine, Beelzebub, blessed is the man, blessings, boast in the Lord, Christians, comfort, complaining, confidence, diligent, dissipation, enthusiasm, eternal life, evil, evil for evil, excess, exhort, face of adversity, faith, feebleminded, fellowship, followers of Jesus, friends, generous help, giving thanks always, glorious kingdom, glory hallelujah, gratitude, his praise shall continually be in my mouth, holy spirit, humble servants, hymns, I will bless the Lord at all times, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy, Joyce Meyer, know no bounds, lies, LOVE, making melody, mature in faith, meditating on god's word, miserable, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, Praise the Lord, pray without ceasing, prayer, psalms, rejoice evermore, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, run roughshod, something good is going to happen through me, something good is going to happen to me, spiritual armour, spiritual songs, steadfast faith, stick with it, taste and see, TGIM! Thank God it's Monday!, the fear of God, The Lord is good, the will of God, tired, to the death, tooth and nail, trust, truth, ungodly world, victorious charge, wisdom
Psalm 34:1. I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
And as the alarms go off in millions of homes all over the world, the Christians who dwell in them rise and shine and joyfully declare: ‘TGIM! Thank God it’s Monday, and I’m off to work! And as Sister Joyce (Joyce Meyer) advises us to say: ‘Something good is going to happen to me today! Something good is going to happen through me today! Glory Hallelujah! Thank God for Mondays and new work weeks!’
Ah mih friends, right now it’s only a dream, but I figure that if we say it often enough we might eventually believe it. Hn! Just a little positive psychology, because we’re way too miserable, tired and complaining on a Monday morning, and it’s not the right attitude for followers of Jesus Christ to have. But since we do have it, and it doesn’t look as though it’s going to change anytime soon, let’s bring on the antidote for that unchristian attitude (smile).
Let’s sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with plenty enthusiasm and heavenly harmony. As one godly choir now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
That was good friends, but not great. The important thing though is that our choirmaster, Jesus, didn’t seem displeased. Now, with our adrenaline up and running, let’s sally forth with confidence into the wicked world out there and battle the enemy tooth and nail, to the death, so that we can further God’s kingdom and glorify His holy name.
And all God’s people declared a loud and proud: ‘Praise the Lord! Amen!’
Now let’s turn to our Bit, the same as yesterday, which deals with continually extolling, praising and blessing our great God. ‘I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.’
Yes friends, that’s how it’s supposed to be with the serious and sincere Christian! Bruh David said that his soul would boast in the Lord, and that’s exactly what we also need to do my faithful brethren! Our enthusiasm and praise for our heavenly Father should know no bounds!
How did Bruh Paul put it to the Ephesians: ‘And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess (dissipation); but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.’ (Eph.5:18-21)
Oh my people, what a glorious day that will be on planet earth, when all God’s children come together as one to continually praise and worship and give thanks to our magnificent Creator!
Hn! Beelzebub won’t be able to stop our victorious charge! We’ll just run roughshod over him and his evil minions like a big tractor runs over a mound of dirt! (smile) They won’t know what hit them!
But until such time as it all comes together my fellow believers, we just have to keep on doing our best by fellowshipping with each other, singing our individual spiritual songs, always giving thanks and being submissive to each other in the fear of the Lord.
Now listen to Bruh Paul as he exhorts the brethren in 1 Thessalonians. ‘Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly (insubordinate), comfort the feebleminded (faint-hearted), support the weak, be patient toward all men. See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men. Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.’ (1 Thess.5:14-18)
And that it is my friends! Oh I know it’s not always easy to live by those rules, but we have to try and do it, and with God’s help, we surely can. And the scholars share this explanation with us.
‘5:18. In every event or circumstance (thing) the Christian is to give thanks to God for the good He can bring out of the event, even should the event be unpleasant. The constant attitude of prayer, mentioned in verse 17, will help the believer to maintain gratitude in the face of adversity.’
Now that is the bane of every believer; maintaining gratitude in the face of adversity. But as we keep reading, studying and meditating on God’s Word, actively communicating with Him through prayer, and fellowshipping with other believers, we will grow and mature in our faith and it will get somewhat easier to maintain an attitude of gratitude in the face of adversity. We just have to be diligent and stick with it my people. Much LOVE!
…O taste and see that the Lord is good…blessed is the man that trusteth in him… (Ps.34:8)
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