24 Sep 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a voice crying in the wilderness, a way of escape, another glorious summer's day, as sheep having no shepherd, chilly days, cold winds, compassion, dreams, escape-door, faithful words, fellowship with God, forgiveness, glory to God, God desires all of us, God is the source of all our hopes, God is your Source, God wants all of you, God-given weather, hardheaded children, He must increase, I must decrease, Jesus is the way, John the Baptist, longings, Lord and Saviour, Lord remind me often today, lost sheep, LOVE, mercy, my joy therefore is fulfilled, name of Jesus, no sorrow, no tears, One Year Book of Bible promises, peace, possessions, praise and glory to God, reminders, role, Ruth Harms Calkin, stubborn, surrendered to God, temptation, tender-hearted love, testifies of Jesus, the bridegroom, the coming of the Messiah, the friend of the bridegroom, the Life, the Light, the light of love, the Messiah, the obits, the sick, the suffering, the Truth, this is the day the Lord has made, tossed and turned, truths, turbulent world, turn to Almighty god, voice of the bridegroom, we will rejoice and be glad in it
John 3:30. He must increase, but I must decrease.
Oh Friends, oh Friends, another glorious summer’s day is in the offing in my area on this Thursday in late September! Oh Glory to God! Usually, by now we’ve had some chilly days and cold winds, but this past week has been perfect summer weather; not hot and sticky, but just right, at least in my opinion.
So let’s all enjoy it to the fullest nuh, because we know it’s not going to last for much longer. Therefore, let’s declare, and mean it: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we WILL rejoice and be glad in it!’
Now we ought to say and do that for any day that our name doesn’t’ appear in the obits, (smile) but more so for these unexpected and unusual days of such wonderful, God-given weather.
And would you believe I went to bed early again last night, woke up a couple times, found it too early to get up, tossed and turned then woke up late… Ah Lord eh!
But this time I woke up feeling fairly refreshed and the back pains were not too bad. Oh much praise and glory to our most wonderful God, who looks down on His stubborn, hardheaded children with such tender-hearted LOVE and compassion! (smile)
Now here is something from the One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin that we all should wisely heed. It’s titled ‘Lord Remind Me Often Today.’
And it says: ‘Lord, remind me often today… That if there is some area in my life Not fully surrendered to You That is always the area In which I will be most severely tried. Lord, remind me often today… That You’ve already done Your part: You’ve provided a way of escape Against every temptation I shall face. I must choose Your escape-door.
Lord, remind me often today… That You want more than first place In my heart and life. You want all of me, always. Surrender means every detail of my life Under Your careful scrutiny. Lord, remind me often today… That You alone are my Source. Only God Always God Totally God You alone are my Source.’
Oh my people, what glorious truths are ensconced in those most timely reminders! Our God desires ALL of us, ALL the time! And furthermore, He IS the Source of ALL our longings, hopes, dreams, possessions… whatever happens or doesn’t happen to us in this life!
Remember He made us for Himself; to have fellowship with Him! That means EVERY aspect of our lives ought to flow through and revolve around Him. And the Bible Promise attached to that poem is also our Bit for today. ‘He must increase, but I must decrease.’
Oh Friends, those are faithful words of John the Baptist as he testified of Jesus. Some of John’s disciples had seen Jesus baptizing, ‘And they came unto John, and said unto him, Rabbi, he that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and all men come to him.’ (John 3:26)
And John just nodded his head in acknowledgement, because he knew that he was just the messenger; the lonely voice crying in the wilderness of unbelief, the one sent to awaken the people to the coming of their Messiah.
Thus ‘John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven. Ye yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before him. He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled.’ (John 3:27-29)
Yes Friends, John knew his role, and played it perfectly. The question today is do we know ours? Do we know what part God has destined for us to play in His kingdom? And if so, are we playing it as best we can? Remember we all have a part to play, but we have to turn to God to enlighten us on it.
Oh Friends, have you done that? Or are you still wandering in this evil, confused and turbulent world like lost sheep; sheep with out a shepherd? If so, then please turn to Jesus without delay, for He is the wonderful shepherd of ALL sheep; both lost and found!
He came to earth especially to save the lost, the sick, the suffering, those going through hard and excruciating times. So if you fall into any one of those categories today, then I beg and plead with you to call on the wonderful, caring, compassionate and ever-LOVING name of Jesus right now, so that your life can be made aright through His tender, LOVING care!
For HE IS THE ANSWER my people! The ONE and ONLY ANSWER to ALL of our problems! And until we truly realize that and consequently bring ALL our fears and cares to Him, we will continue to be lost sheep in this ungodly world, anxious and afraid, plagued by all its evil and ungodliness.
So Friends, in godly wisdom, let’s now turn to Almighty God in confession and repentance, accepting His Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, as the ultimate power, our very best friend, the one who died that we might be saved, and who will someday soon return to earth to rule His kingdom with peace, LOVE, compassion, mercy and forgiveness, where there will be no tears, no sorrow or anything dark and evil to cause us fear or anxiety; when we’ll bask in the amazing and wonderful light of LOVE that’s Jesus! Much LOVE!
…Jesus is indeed…the Way…the Truth…the Life…and the Light…no man can have joyful fellowship with God…unless they go through…first accept Him as their Lord and Saviour…
14 Dec 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a full and living experience, Advent, ascension, atone for our sins, behold the days come, bow to Jesus' eternal majesty, Calvary, Christ's Second Coming, Christmas, comes from the heart, confess that Jesus is Lord, death on the cross, direct access to god, ever-LOVING God, ever-loving Lord and Saviour, faithful, family of god, fellowship, fill God's sanctuaries, forgive iniquity, forgiveness of sin, gladness of heart, glory, God's covenant making with Israel, God's policies of administration, God's prophetic programme, grateful praise, heartwarming, herald a new era, holy and sinless life, I will make a new covenant with Israel, in a blaze of glory, intimacy with god, inward code for living, Israel, Jesus Christ, joy, live lives that are pleasing to god, LOVE, merciful, moral civil ceremonial regulations, name of Jesus, New Covenant, new week, obedient to God's will, Old Testament, praise, prayer, pre Christian era, promise of a new covenant, remember their sin no more, resurrection, sacrifice, selflessly sacrificing, Sinaitic covenant, Son-light of Jesus Christ, Sunday, Thank you Jesus, thanks, the Christ child, the day of the Lord, the Good Book, the Sabbath Day, to know Jesus is to love Him, unchangeable prinicples of God's law, universality of the knowledge of God, victorious living, what a wonderful God we serve and worship, with the house of Judah, worship, worthy of your love, written in the hearts of God's people
Jeremiah 31:31. Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah.
Oh Friends, it’s a new week! Yeh! And today, Sunday, is the first day in it. So let’s give our wonderful Creator and God big thanks of praise and glory for bringing us safely through the dark, demon-filled night into the bright, brilliant, bountiful and ever so beautiful Son-light of Jesus Christ, our most LOVING Lord and Saviour!
And on this auspicious day of the Lord, the Sabbath, let’s joyfully remember the reason for the seasons we’re celebrating; Advent, the eagerly awaited expectation of the Christ child; Christmas, the actual birth of the Christ child.
And all God’s people gave out with a heartwarming shout of grateful praise. ‘Thank You heavenly Father, for sending Jesus to sacrifice and atone for our sins. We’re not worthy of Your LOVE, but You still bless us with it because You are a merciful and ever-LOVING God.
We praise Your Holy Name, and will endeavour to live lives that are pleasing to You, and glorify You. This we pray in the name of Jesus, whose birth at Christmas gave us hope for a new future, heralded a new era in our lives, and whose death on the cross at Calvary, along with His resurrection and ascension brought Your promise of a new covenant to pass.
And we can’t end without saying a big, big thank You to Jesus for selflessly sacrificing His holy and sinless life for us. He didn’t have to do it. But He was obedient to Your will. Help us to be likewise obedient to Your dictates. Thank You Jesus! We bow to Your eternal majesty, and confess that You are indeed Lord of All! Amen.’
Ah mih people, that prayer might seem long and disjointed, but the important thing is that it came from the heart, as all prayers ought to, regardless of their length or correctness of language. (smile) And please don’t forget that today is the day for worship, praise and fellowship with both man and God.
Please let’s fill God’s sanctuaries with our bodies as well as with joy, thanks and gladness of heart, because our Bit is now in a sure mode of fulfillment. ‘Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah.’
Yes Friends, that wonderful promise was set in motion through Christ’s birth and His selfless actions as a young man. We’re now awaiting its culmination through His Second Coming in blazing glory!
And today I want to share some important explanations of the scholars, re that covenant, because they are invaluable in helping us to understand it. I don’t know how much I’ll be able to get in, because it takes up almost an entire page of the Good Book.
But here goes: ’31:31-34. The new covenant is the culmination of God’s covenant-making with Israel. It may be viewed as a document of God’s prophetic programme and of His policies of administration.
As an administrative document, it renders obsolete and succeeds the old Sinaitic covenant that served as the manual of procedure for carrying out the moral, civil, and ceremonial regulations relative to national Israel in the pre-Christian era (cf. Deut.7:6-11; Heb.8:7-13).
Some features of the old covenant are carried over into the new covenant: (1) There is in the new covenant a stress on the importance of the unchangeable principles of God’s law.
However, these will now be written not on stone but in the hearts of God’s people – they will become part of their inward code for living, and will conform in all respects to the moral law of the Scriptures.
Accordingly, the ideal that the old covenant called for (cf. Deut. 6:6-7; 10:16; 30:6) in external commandments will be internalized under the terms of the new covenant.
(2) With the establishment of the covenant at Sinai, Israel had become nationally God’s people (Ex. 6:6-7; 19:5-6). As such, they were to be a faithful and obedient people, reflecting His standards in their lives (Deut. 14:1-2; 26:16-19).
In a far greater way, the intimacy of the believer with God makes the realization of God’s relation to His people under the terms of the new covenant to be a full and living experience. Moreover, not just the Israelites but all believers (those who know God, v.34) are now called under the new covenant my people. (See 2 Cor.6:16; Gal.3:6-9, 15-18, 26-29; Titus 2:14)
These features of vital inwardness and a universality of the knowledge of God stand out as the two great distinctive elements in the new covenant.
(3) A third feature that represents continuity with the old covenant, yet superiority under the new covenant is the matter of forgiveness. Although God is said to forgive their iniquity under the administration of the Sinaitic covenant (Ex.34:6-7; Num.14:18; Deut.5:9-10; cf. Ps.86:15; Joel 2:13), in the stipulations of the new covenant, God will remember their sin no more.
This feature is a reminder that men in Old Testament times were saved in anticipation of the finished work of Calvary. Under the old economy, believers approached God in their worship experience through human mediators (Ex.20:19); but with the completed redemption by Christ, the members of the family of God now have direct access to God (cf. 1 Tim.2:5-6; Titus 2:11-14, 3:5-7; Heb. 9:1-10:22).
Where full forgiveness has been granted, there is no more remembrance of sin. Positionally and experientially, with the living reality of both God’s law in the heart and the indwelling Christ (Col.1:20-27) in the believer, there is not only full and continuous forgiveness of sin (1 John 1:8-9), but full provision for faithful and victorious living.’
And we’ll stop there for today. I do hope that some of that explanation does improve our understanding of some of the differences between the old and new covenants. I apologize for some of the big words and terms the scholars use that might have you running to your dictionary. But that’s just the nature of the beast – scholars just use big words because they feel that shows their scholarship. (smile)
So basically Friends, the new covenant writes God’s law in our hearts, rather than on outward things like tablets of stone; allows us to go directly to God not through some other human mediator, and in addition to forgiving our sins, now throws them far behind God’s back, never to be remembered again.
As I keep saying, what a wonderful God we serve and worship! And whoever rejects Him is a total idiot. Much LOVE!
…to know, know, know Him…is to LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Him…
07 Dec 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a name above every name, acknolwedge, adore, almighty god, at the name of Jesus, blessings, boomerang, Bruh Paul, cast pearls before swine, Christ and HIs church, Christian circles, Come Sunday morning, comforts us in time of pain, communication with God, condemn, condemnation, Creator of the universe, Each day is a gift from God, eternal life, every knee shall bow, every tongue confess, evil, exalt His holy name, faithfulness, fellowship, fill the Lord's house with believers, flowers, give not that which is holy to dogs, go to church, God's everlasting goodness, God's goodness, hands of our dear ones, heals our hurts, help, hypocrisy, hypocrites, imperfectness, jehovah god, judge, judge not, judgement, laughter, loving kindness, measure, mercy, mmorning brightness, name of Jesus, obedience, overlooking our own faults, owner of everything, power to pighten our hearts, praise, prayer, rainbows, rat-race, redeem us, rejoicing, reverence, sacrificed His only son, salvation, shortsighted, sins, song, songs and psalms, sun, that Jesus Christ is Lord, the beam in thine own eye, the Lord's Day, the mote in thy brother's eye, the name of Jesus, the Philippians, the Sabbath Day, to the glory of God the Father, true reality, trust, unbelievers, ungodly, work to be done, worship
Matthew 7:3. And why beholdest thou the mote (speck) that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam (plank) that is thine own eye?
Come Sunday morning – the Lord’s Day, the Sabbath – it’s time to go to church; fill the Lord’s house with believers. Come Sunday morning – it’s time for prayer, praise and worship. Come Sunday morning – it’s time for great fellowship amongst believers.
Come Sunday morning – it’s time for the Lord’s name to be heard in songs and psalms all over the world, in grateful tribute to His overwhelming mercy and LOVING-kindness!
Yes Friends, today is the Lord’s Day, so please let’s treat it as such, abounding in much communication with Him and plenty rejoicing in His everlasting goodness to us!
And today I want to share a fabulous and most appropriate poem printed on a card I received for my birthday a few weeks ago. Thanks Lori. It’s titled: ‘Each Day Is a Gift from God.’
Please recite it with me: ‘He has given us morning brightness, and sun, Laughter to share, and work to be done. He has given us rainbows, flowers, and song, And the hands of our dear ones to help us along.
He has given us prayer, with its wonderful power To lighten our hearts in a troublesome hour. He has given us blessings to brighten our way, And always – the gift of another new day.’
Oh my people, how truthful are those words eh! Wow! It’s what we were just talking about; God’s goodness to us. Our wonderful God has done so much for us, and yet we refuse to acknowledge and praise and adore and worship and reverence Him as we should. How foolish is that of us eh my brethren!
Chuh! The Creator of the universe, the owner of EVERYTHING that exists, the Provider of all that we have, the One who heals our hurts and comforts us in our times of pain, the One who sacrificed His only Son to redeem us from our abominable sins – and yet we refuse to hold Him and His Holy Name to the highest level of exaltation, of obedience, trust and faithfulness.
What could be more shortsighted than that eh my people? Nothing, my people, nothing whatsoever! But please remember these memorable words that Bruh Paul wrote to the Philippians, concerning the name of Jesus.
‘Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of (those) things in heaven, and (those) things in earth, and (those) things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.’ (Phil.2:9-11)
Please remember those fateful words my brethren, for we are at such a low point right now in worshipping Jehovah God, that I’m not sure we can go any lower, with all the evil, ungodly, worldly stuff that’s floating around, even in supposed Christian circles.
Our hypocrisy is legendary, and does detract a great deal from the respect that unbelievers have for Christ and His church. That is possibly the number one reason that most unbelievers would give for not believing and/or not going to church: Too many hypocrites in Christ’s church!
Well fine, that might be true, but then just come and add one more to it nuh! (smile) That’s because we are all hypocrites to a certain extent, in one way or another. None of us is perfect, but we’re always quick to judge the imperfectness of others, while forgetting, or conveniently overlooking our own faults.
But please remember Jesus memorable words, including our Bit, when He told us not to judge. ‘Judge (condemn) not, that ye be not judged (condemned). For with what judgement (condemnation) ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete (use), it shall be measured to you again.
And why beholdest thou the mote (speck) that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam (plank) that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote (speck) out of thine eye; and behold a beam (plank) is in thine own eye?
Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam (plank) out of thine own eye; and then thou shalt see clearly to cast out the mote (speck) out of thy brother’s eye. Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend (tear) you.’ (Matt.7:1-6)
Oh Friends, Jesus could not have put it any simpler or more straightforward than that!
And the scholars offer this explanation. ‘7:5-6. Thou hypocrite is the only statement that can be made for this play actor who pretends to be a physician when he himself is sick. The dogs and swine refer to those who have deliberately rejected the message of truth. These particular animals were especially repulsive to Jesus’ audience.’
Ah Friends, what a foolish bunch we can be when Lucifer waves his pretty but flimsy and worthless things and activities in our faces. We fall so hard and so quickly for the supposed glamour and merriment of the world’s lustful activities, while unwisely shunting the things of God, the much more worthwhile things of heaven to the background.
That foolish action my people, like a boomerang, will one day come back to haunt us. So please let’s get wise nuh, let’s wake up to the true reality of our situation and turn to Almighty God for succour and saving, because He is the ONLY ONE who can truly provide those things, things which we so badly need in this rat race that we so nicely term – life. Much LOVE!
…only the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob can provide…true salvation and eternal life…to the hurting, hungry and hard of heart…
19 Apr 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a new man, acorn, all power to Jesus, an empty church has more room for God, appropriate time, believe in Jesus, believers, belittle Jesus, caught napping, Christ crucified, confidence, conquering hero, death has prevailed, discretion, earthly demise, Easter Sunday, eerie feeling, eternal life, eternal Son of Jehovah god, everlasting truth, evil counterparts, exhortations, eyes of faith, faithful happening, favourwalk safely, fear, fellow believers, foolish, Garden of Gethsemane, get understanding, get wisdom, glory hallelujah, God's children, God's Spirit, Good Friday, grace, Hades, heavenly wisdom, ignorant things, individual situations, It is finished, Jesus Christ, Jesus' people, keep thy foot from being caught, knowledge, life to your soul, listen, Lord and Saviour, lost sould, LOVE, mighty conqueror, name of Jesus, oak, obedience, paragon, Praise the name of Jesus, recipe for favour, safety, salvation, saviour jesus christ, something constructive, sound wisdom, terror, the clouds drop down dew, the Lord shall be thy confidence, trouble from the wicked, truth, understanding, understanding better than silver, unwise, victorious over death, when the trumpets call up yonder, wisdom, wisdom better than gold, you shall not be afraid, you shall not stumble
Proverbs 16:16. How much better is it to get wisdom than gold! and to get understanding rather to be chosen than silver!
Oh Friends, it is finished! The deed has been done! Jesus Christ has been crucified! Death has prevailed!
How unfortunate you say. However, please remember that for a mighty oak to sprout from a comparatively tiny acorn, or any tree to sprout from its seed, it must be planted in the deep, dark recesses of the earth; it must die first. The same goes for our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. For Him to rise again, He had to undergo death first, and spend time in the shadows of Hades.
But fortunately, unlike a seed that sometimes has to spend a long time being dead, being buried in the earth, our Saviour only spent two days. Glory Hallelujah! He died and was buried yesterday, Good Friday, and He will rise on the third day; that’s tomorrow, Easter Sunday; a new man, a mighty conqueror, victorious over death and its evil counterparts!
And all God’s children boldly and loudly declared: ‘All power to Jesus, the eternal son of Jehovah God! He was dead, and was buried, but on the third day He rose again, victorious from the grave, to proclaim salvation and eternal life for the lost souls who believe in Him! Praise the Name of Jesus, our conquering hero!’
Ah mih people, what a paragon we have in Jesus! That’s why it surprises, and also disappoints me when others cry Him down, try to demean and belittle Him. I guess I shouldn’t be too hard on them because they are suffering from a terrible deficiency; meaning that they can only see as far as their physical eyes can shine, there are no eyes of faith in their souls, the only thing that allows us to believe in Jesus.
Let us pray for those unfortunate persons, that sometime before their earthly demise, they will wake up to the true reality of the situation and accept Christ as their Lord and Saviour before it’s too late.
And what shall we ponder on today eh? Oh yes, my people, there’s a faithful happening that’s worth the telling! (smile)
Two nights ago, I was watching and praying with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. The church was semi-dark, only lit by a few candles. At one stage I was there all by my lonesome, and as always, that situation brings to my mind the saying that an empty church has more room for God. And at those times I tend to believe it, because when there’s a crowd in the church, the bodies seem to take up all the physical space.
But there’s a kind of eerie feeling, being all alone in a semi-dark church late at night, as though the rest of it is filled with God’s Spirit! He just has more room to wander, not obstructed by human bodies. Anyway, the last couple of times I watched and prayed with Christ in the Garden, the Lord whispered a word to my spirit, in an area in which I guess He figured I needed improvement.
One year it was simply ‘LISTEN!’ Now that I’m still working on. (smile) I don’t remember what the other year was, how sad, but this year it was ‘GET WISDOM, GET UNDERSTANDING! Hn, Hn!
Oh my people, what an imaginative and wonderful God we serve! Hence our Bit for today: ‘How much better is it to get wisdom than gold! and to get understanding rather to be chosen than silver!’ And those are words of everlasting truth my people!
And that jewel from Cousin Sol can be proven quite easily by these other words of his: ‘The Lord by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens. By his knowledge the depths (deeps) are broken up, and the clouds drop down the dew.‘ (Prov.3:19-20)
Oh Friends, it says there that the Lord used wisdom and understanding to create the universe. Now if those two things were so important in God’s work, why shouldn’t they be just as important in ours eh?
No wonder in his exhortations to obedience, Cousin Sol solemnly warns: ‘My son, let them not depart from thine eyes: keep sound wisdom and discretion: so shall they be life unto thy soul, and grace (favour) to thy neck. Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely, and thy foot shall not stumble.
When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid: yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet. Be not afraid of sudden fear (terror), neither of the desolation of (trouble from) the wicked, when it cometh. For the Lord shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken (caught).‘ (Prov.3:21-26)
Oh my people, my people, I would indeed be extremely foolish if I didn’t follow that recipe for favour and safety, especially after the Lord specifically put it in my spirit.
And please note my brethren that that was not meant for me alone, but for all of us; all of His people. He’s obviously seen the foolish, unwise, ignorant and evil things that are now preeminent in our world and is sending us a message to smarten up, to get with Jesus’ programme, so we don’t end up in the same God-forsaken place like the evildoers.
So Friends, let’s wake up and get with it nuh. We’re supposed to be Jesus’ people, that means we’re supposed to be wise, though we surely aren’t showing that in our everyday lives.
Therefore, let’s ponder our individual situations this Easter weekend, cause it’s a most appropriate time, and do something constructive about the negative and unwise things in our lives, for we certainly don’t want to be caught napping and wanting when the trumpets call up yonder. That’s heavenly wisdom my fellow believers. Please, let’s embrace it wholeheartedly nuh! Much LOVE!
…as my old mammy use to tell me…son, when you don’t hear…yuh going to feel…and feel hard too…and was she ever right…
P.S Please accept my apologies for a typo at the very top of yesterday’s Bit, (not for the Blog) where I wrote Luke 23:24a instead of Luke 23:34a. That’s if many of you noticed. (smile) Remember the ole fella’s only human, thus not perfect. Much LOVE!
16 Apr 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adultery, awesome God, Bathsheba, be acceptable in God's sight, blabbering, bless the Lord, bless the name of jesus, blessing, brothers and sisters in christ, Bruh David, champion, change, contrition, crucifixion, different, Easter weekend, faithful, fellow believers, godly response, good and positive manner, growing, hearts and minds, Holy Redeemer, Holy Week, immortal words, inner contrition, investigate our hearts, Irene Peter, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Jesus is worthy, Jesus' time, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, meditation, my redeemer, name of Jesus, not in sync with God, O Lord my strength, personality, Pharisees, pleading, Praise the Lord, prayer for cleansing, prophet Nathan, reality of the situation, resurrection, sacrifices, self-control, serve the Lord, shout Hallelujah, Sing praises to the Lord, sing unto the Lord, sinners, talk a good talk, the king of glory, the meditation of my heart, the words of my mouth, tongues, tongues wag, true motives, truth and wisdom, walk the talk, wicked, with Jesus' 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 (rock), and my redeemer.
And then Friends, it was Wednesday morning of Holy Week! Wow! That most amazing and awesome time is fast approaching! We’re talking about the Easter weekend when Jesus, our mighty Lord and Saviour turned the whole world upside down with His crucifixion and eventual resurrection!
And all God’s people declared a loud shout of joy: ‘Oh bless the name of Jesus, our champion and our Holy Redeemer!’
Yes my people, the name of Jesus is indeed worthy of incomparable blessing, thanks and praise for the overwhelming change He’s wrought in the world and in our personal lives.
And speaking of change Friends, here is an interesting quote from one Irene Peter, taken from my One More Day Devotional. There were so many Irene Peter’s listed when I checked for some info on her, that it was impossible to decide which one it was.
Anyway, Irene says that: ‘Just because everything is different, doesn’t mean anything has changed.’ And that can often be true my brethren!
We are continually growing – hopefully in a good and positive manner – but ofttimes that growth is gradual and we don’t realize or recognize the change (s) until an event, or some events, wake us up to the reality of the situation.
And though our lives may sometimes end up being completely different, deep down inside we are still the same basic person; still having the same unique personality that God has so amazingly granted us. We are still warm, caring, LOVING and faithful people, but we have grown in certain respects.
And it’s always nice to know that though we have grown, through all the changes, our basic personality has remained the same. And oh my people, one of the best ways to grow is by allowing the faithful and immortal words of Bruh David in our Bit, to take hold of, and rule our souls.
‘Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength (rock), and my redeemer.’
What a powerful statement, my fellow believers! One that we should all be trying to practice!
And though it is not always an easy task – what with all the ungodliness and evil that continually badger and buffet us – with Jesus’ help, we can certainly do it most of the time.
That’s provided we’re serious about it, and retain a strong self-control, not allowing our tongues to start blabbering before our hearts and minds consider the situation and are able to formulate a godly response.
And we have Bruh David again pleading in Psalm 51, his prayer for cleansing after the prophet Nathan draped him up for his adultery with Bathsheba.
He prayerfully declares: ‘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 a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.’ (Ps.51:15-17)
Yes Friends, our God doesn’t desire outward and/or material sacrifices so much as true inner contrition. And that’s where a lot of us, even supposed believers, are sadly lacking today!
We certainly talk a good talk, and sometimes even walk the talk, but yet, like the Pharisees in Jesus’ time, our hearts are not truly turned to God, or in sync with Him and His directives. That’s why He wisely chooses to investigate our hearts, the inner recesses of our souls, to ascertain our true motives.
And we’ll close with these beautiful words and intentions from Psalm 104 – God’s preservation of nature. ‘I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.
My meditation of him shall be sweet: I will be glad in the Lord. Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more. Bless thou the Lord, O my soul. Praise ye the Lord. (Shout Hallelujah!).’ (Ps.104:33-35)
And my people, there’s no better time than this Easter Season to shout a glorious ‘Hallelujah! Praise and blessings to our awesome God, and to His most wonderful Son, Jesus Christ, the true King of Glory!’
Let’s now go forth in all truth and wisdom to LOVE and serve the Lord! Much LOVE!
…God’s people are at their best…when their hearts and mouths are filled with His praise…
P.S. Oh Friends, please excuse the lateness of the Bit, but it was all my fault. I got up late, and then at one point Internet Explorer began acting up, as it has been doing since they supposedly made some improvements. Hn!
But at one stage all I could get were capital letters, and there I was thrashing Explorer. I even stopped and got on to Google Chrome, only to experience the same situation. Then it suddenly dawned on me, the capitals lock was on.
Hn, hn! How ‘geekish’ eh! A perfect example of what I was talking about; letting our hearts and minds consider the situation before letting out tongues wag. Ah Lord eh! Our God certainly knows how to drive home a lesson.
Please note too how short the Bits are these days. (smile) Much LOVE, my brothers and sister in Christ!
SCRIP-BITS 