20 Dec 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adventurous, Boxing Day, broken down, cause confusion, celebrate the birth of Christ, Counselor, enmity, exciting, Father of Eternity, fellowship, Friday chant, fun, furthering your glorious kingdom, Gentiles, his name shall be called, Isaiah, Jews, made us one, never done, on our p's and q's, our Lord and Saviour, put Christ first, renewed and refreshed, salvation, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, the carnal side, the christian Church, the everlasting Father, the government shall be upon his shoulder, the greatest gift, the Lord of hosts, the Lord's sanctuary, the middlw partition, the mighty God, the Prince of Peace, the reason for the season, the workingman's song, the zeal, unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, Wonderful, working for Jesus
Isaiah 9:6. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
And yes, it’s Friday, the day we all been longing for, the one that heralds the end of the work week! And it’s also the Friday before Christmas! And that’s an even bigger Friday than usual, because we’re all wrapped up in the Christmas thing, where we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ; eat, drink and give gifts to celebrate the occasion! But please, please, let’s not put the eating and drinking and gift giving first as we tend to so often do nuh! Let’s put the thought of Christ being born first and foremost, as it ought to be. Remember it’s the greatest gift this sinful and evil world has ever received. So let’s be adamant about putting Christ in His right and proper place in the season: FIRST! For HE is the reason for the season.
Now let’s hear what the ordinary workingman has to say on this Friday before Christmas nuh. And he joyfully shouts: ‘Oh mama, mama, TGIF! Thank God is Friday yes! Christmas Friday to boot! And ah taking the whole of next week of! No work for another seven days; just eat and drink and party! Brother! And is the slave master ever so vex, because several people taking holidays this week, and he have to pay we for Christmas and Boxing Day as well, even though we not working. So yuh know he’s not a happy camper, because he don’t like to pay at the best of times, but it just kills him when he have to pay us for days we don’t actually work.
But that’s the system Mr. slave master, and yuh got to live by it, like it or not. But enough about he oui! Is Christmas; Christmas time in the city! And all the lights bright and shiny on the Christmas tree inside and the leafless trees outside! The weather is not the greatest, snowy and dreary, but the children happy because they see gifts packing up under the tree, and I happy too because plenty drinks and food in the cold room downstairs, and plenty treats up here. So how can I not thank God for Fridays, the weekends and Christmas eh?’
And that’s ever so right my brethren! We’ve got to thank the Almighty for ALL that we have, especially His Son at Christmas time! And though the ordinary workingman does have some good points in his song, we, as believers have to be ever so careful that we don’t overdo the carnal side of the equation and allow the enemy to get inside our spirits and souls and cause confusion as he just likes to do. That’s why our Friday Chant, though enthusiastic, is not as ebullient as the workingman’s. (smile) We have to pay a li’l more attention to the evil around us.
So let’s chant it now nuh, with sincere hearts and strong voices. ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen!’
Ah friends, working for Jesus is wonderful, adventurous and exciting, but as they say, it’s never done. We always have to be on our p’s and q’s, even when, or especially when we’re enjoying ourselves. So I guess Granny’s warning is apropos right here and now: ‘Sonny boy, ah begging yuh, drunk or sober, please mind yuh business!’ And that my people should be our motto for this Christmas season. We don’t need any more problems than we already have…
Oh, and by the way…let’s not forget church nuh! Ah notice nobody ain’t say nothing about church yet nuh! (smile) But it is imperative that we visit the Lord’s sanctuary over this Christmas season and give him much thanks and praise for sending His One and Only Son to earth at this time so that our salvation could be forthcoming. And there is no better scripture that proclaims this than the mighty and momentous words of Isaiah. ‘For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.’
Mama Mia! What a promise! And that’s not all: ‘Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgement and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.’ (Is.9:7) And perform it He did, starting with the birth, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus! We just waiting for His Second Coming now to continue the fulfillment of that prophecy! What a mighty and faithful God we serve my people!
Now let’s look at some New Testament scriptures that attest to the fulfillment of our Bit, starting with ‘For unto us a child is born.’ Hear the angels talk to the shepherds on Christmas night. ‘For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.’ (Luke 2:11) And per ‘unto us a son is given.’ Listen to Jesus Himself: ‘For God so LOVED the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have everlasting life.’ (John 3:16)
Then, per ‘the government shall be upon his shoulder,’ listen to Jesus again, this time as He sends the disciples out into the world to proselytize it: ‘All power (authority) is given unto me in heaven and in earth.’ (Matt. 28:18) We’ll leave out ‘his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor,’ because it’s found in the Old Testament (Judges 13;18) (smile) And by the way, in Hebrew that’s one word, talking about ‘miraculous counsel given by this God-like King.’
And as per ‘the mighty God, The everlasting Father,’ hear Bruh Paul from Titus, as he talks about the Christian life. ‘Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.’ (Titus 2:13) ‘The everlasting Father, literally means Father of Eternity. He alone is the source of eternal life.’ And finally, per, ‘The Prince of Peace,’ hear Bruh Paul to the Ephesians. ‘For he (himself) is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition (division) between us.’ (Eph. 2:!4)
Yes friends, Jesus is the ONE, the One of Peace who broke down the enmity between Jews and Gentiles and made us ONE in the Christian Church, His Church. So please, let’s ponder all of that this upcoming week as we celebrate Christ’s birth nuh, and keep Him first place in our hearts, souls and minds. Much LOVE!
…without Christ’s birth…there’d be no Christmas… never forget that…
P.S. Yeh, I know it’s long and late, but it’s ever so good! (smile) Much LOVE!
19 Nov 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: aboslutely nobody, adept at the job, be compared, be likened, Beelzebub, brotherly obligations, Christian freedom, dwellest between the cherubim, Ethan, foolish thinking, foolsihness, give ear to my prayer, glorious in holiness, God of Israel, Guide, Hezekaih, holy habitation, hurry, idols, in god's eyes, led forth the people, lord of hosts, LOVE, manna, mercy, most powerful entity, my friend Jesus, navigator, one God, our Lord and Saviour, overthrow God, redeemed, reverence, sacrifice, separate the Red Sea, share His love, stupidity, the beloved of God, the Ezrahite, the Father, the living truth, the sons of man, the voice of my supplication, trust, Tuesday Mantra, unto the Lord, who among, who in heaven, wisdom, worry
Psalm 89:6. For who in heaven can be compared unto the Lord? Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the Lord?
One more morning…one more wet and cloudy morning! But, as always, Christ will see us through it successfully if we ask Him nicely. (smile) Yes, He is our Lord and Saviour, Guide and Navigator, so there is no One better to ask, since He’s the most adept at the job! Give Him praise and thanks for His awesome help my fellow believers! For as Ethan the Ezrahite said in his contemplation of God’s sure promises to David: ‘For who in heaven can be compared unto the Lord? Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the Lord?’
And the correct answer to that question is ‘Absolutely NOBODY!’ And for that very reason: ‘God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had (held) in reverence of all them that are about him.’ (Ps. 89:7) And isn’t that the living truth, although so many of us are not giving Him the reverence that is His deserved due. Oh my people, how can we claim t be wise when we are working against our Creator, the most powerful entity in the universe He created? That’s not wisdom, that’s utter stupidity!
As I recently saw someone explain the difference between stupidity and foolishness: the last is making a wrong decision when you don’t know all the facts, but the first is making the wrong decision when you do know all the facts. And that’s exactly what’s happening with our world today! We all know that God is Creator and King, but yet we refuse to honour and adore Him and live by His rules. Instead we listen to the lying and most stupid Beelzebub, yes he was totally stupid for thinking He could overthrow God, the very one who created him.
And we’ll reinforce that statement with the truthful words of Bruh David: ‘Give ear, O Lord, unto my prayer; and attend to the voice of my supplications. In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee: for thou wilt answer me.’ (Ps. 86:6-7) Oh friends, in the day of our trouble can we call upon the stupid, lying and deceitful devil to help us? I don’t think so, because he doesn’t have even one iota of the stupendous power that our great and wonderful God possesses! Satan can’t make any new beings or creations; he can just titillate and titivate whatever the Lord’s already made. (smile)
That’s why Bruh David could confidently continue and sincerely proclaim: ‘Among the gods there is none like unto thee. O Lord; neither are there any works like unto thy works.’ (Ps. 86:8) And friends, if we don’t believe that deep down in our innermost being, then we’re just as stupid as the supposed prince of darkness! For hear what is going to eventually happen in this going ungodly world. ‘All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord; and shall glorify thy name. For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: thou art God ALONE.’ (Ps. 86:9-10)
Oh precious people, please pay particular attention to that last statement, for it is the gospel truth, and those who don’t believe it do so at their very peril. And long before Bruh David, Moses said it thus in his song of praise: ‘Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the gods (the mighty ones)? Who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders? Thou stretchedst out thy right hand, the earth swallowed them. Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed: thou hast guided them in thy strength unto thy holy habitation.’ (Ex. 15:11-13)
Tell me friends, could Lucifer separate the Red Sea and allow the children of Israel to cross over on dry land? Could he then close it back up and drown Pharaoh and his mighty army? What about feeding the Israelites for forty years in the wilderness with manna, and not letting their clothes or shoes wear our eh? No way Jose! The lying and deceitful and stupid devil could not do any of those things, because he is basically powerless, he just relies on our foolish thinking and behaviour to do his evil deeds.
Now listen to King Hezekiah, when he received a letter from the king of Assyria, threatening war and utter destruction. Hezekiah’s first and very wise action was to take it to the temple and spread it before the Lord, showing his total dependence on Him. Then he prayed: ‘O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, that dwellest between the cherubim, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth: thou hast made heaven and earth.’ (Is. 37:16) And we all know that the Lord answered Hezekiah’s prayer by sending His angel to destroy the army of the Assyrian king Sennacherib, without Hezekiah lifting a hand. (Is. 37:33-38)
That’s the mighty, magnificent and ever-faithful God we serve my brethren! And we can’t close without some words from Bruh Paul. (smile) He’s speaking here in regards to Christian freedom and brotherly obligations, in particular, eating food sacrificed to idols. ‘As concerning therefore the eating of those things that are offered in sacrifice unto idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one. For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth (as there be gods many and lords many,) But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we (live) by him.’ (1 Cor. 8:4-6)
That says it all friends! So let’s go home declaring (yeh!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the whole world know who and whose we are. All together now, in strong voice with sincere hearts: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’ And the only proper response to that Mantra is to go out and action those statements, share the LOVE of our friend Jesus! Much LOVE!
…who can outdo the Creator of this universe…NO ONE…
16 Nov 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a memory, angst, Anselm's quotes, convert the whole world, deceitful things of the world, Eliphaz, give, glad you're alive, God LOVES a cheerful giver, God places, good measure, hindsight 20/20, I can do all things, I have seen, iniquity, inspiration, inspired ideas, Jesus Christ, lazy Saturday, misleading, negative weather, our Lord and Saviour, pent up frustrations, positive words, pressed down, produce positive results, reap life everlasting, reap the same, reap to the flesh, reapeth sparingly, shaken together, sow peas reap corn, sow to the flesh, sow to the Spirit, sow wickedness, soweth sapringly, the innocent perish, the righteous cut off, the value of a monent, they that plow iniquity, through Christ who strengthens me, toss and turn, ungrateful sinners
Job 4:8. Even as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same.
Saturday… oh lazy Saturday! And I guess that after a rather trying week of labour and all that it entails, plus some negative weather situations, we all deserve to have a lazy day to wind down and release all our pent up frustrations and angst. (smile) And there’s no better day than Saturday for doing that. I can just hear the many sighs of relief as so many of us open our bleary eyes, look at the clock, then say, ‘Thank God is Saturday!’ then roll over and go back to sleep. Unfortunately it didn’t work for me. I got frustrated when I awoke around five and then tried to go back to sleep because all I did was toss and turn for over half an hour, before I finally gave up and got up. That’s why the Bit is a tad early. (smile)
And since it’s Saturday, let’s have a gander at the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week, as he sincerely aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. Hear this first one: ‘Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment, until it becomes a memory.’ And isn’t that the awesome truth, as so many of us have found out over the years! We all have experiences we don’t pay much attention to at the time they are happening, but later on discover that they were indeed seminal moments in our lives. That’s why hindsight is 20/20! (smile)
This next quote tells us: ‘Stay close to anything that makes you glad you are alive.’ Now I’m not so sure about that nuh, because there are so many things that make us feel glad to be alive, but in actual fact are not good for us. And we all know them; the misleading and deceitful things of the world. I guess it might be wiser to add something like ‘if it is Jesus’ will’ to the end of the quote. Then there’s this: ‘Inspiration comes from within yourself. One has to be positive. When you’re positive, good things happen.’ The first sentence is true a lot of the times, inspiration does come from within, when God places inspired ideas in our spirits, but one can also be inspired by external and outward circumstances and situations.
However, the remainder of the quote is definitely true. We have to be positive in what we do, since positive words, thoughts and actions produce positive results, while the negative aspects produce negative results. And there was never a more positive person that our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. How yuh mean? Just think on it nuh: He had to be the master of positivism to have left a glorious spot in a glorious heaven, to come to this hellhole called earth, to die for a bunch of ungrateful sinners, who He knew would reject Him, then leave a mere twelve men to try and convert the whole world! But it all worked out as He planned. Glory Be!
That leads us to ‘You must do the things you think you cannot do.’ And that’s ever so true, especially if you are a sincere believer in Jesus Christ, because He doesn’t advocate giving up. Those words don’t appear in His vocabulary at all. And furthermore, please remember the wonderful supportive scripture that says: ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!’ (Phil. 4:13) Wow friends! That means anything that is in Christ’s will, He will enable us to do, we just have to buckle down and do it! So when things crop up that seem hard, or even impossible, let’s just remember that Christ will help us to do it, and better yet, remember Jesus’ words to His disciples, re a camel passing through the eye of a needle: ‘With men this is impossible: but with God, ALL things are possible.’ (Matt. 19:26)
And I’ve left the best for last: ‘You get what you give.’ Oh my people, that is the very basis of God’s economy! We know it as you reap what you sow, and that’s the living truth! As the old people would say, you can’t sow peas and hope to reap corn, but many of us do just that. Now let’s look at some scriptures that point out the importance of sowing and reaping in God’s great universe. And Job’s friend Eliphaz puts it quite succinctly when he rebukes him. ‘Remember I pray thee, who ever perished, being innocent? Or where were the righteous cut off? Even as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same.’ (Job 4:7-8)
The scholars tell us that Eliphaz was talking from personal experience, and since he meant that you reap what you sow, his point was Job must be suffering because of his sin. Now, although in this case that wasn’t true, all through the Good Book we are told that the doers of iniquity will be severely punished. And Cousin Sol gives us a couple serious verses to consider. ‘The liberal (generous) soul shall be made fat (rich): and he that watereth shall be watered also himself.’ (Prov.11:25) And then: ‘He that hath a bountiful (generous) eye shall be blessed; for he giveth of his bread to the poor.’ (Prov.22:9)
And Jesus said it thus: ‘Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom (pocket). For with the same measure that ye mete (use) withal (with the same) it shall be measured to you again.’ (Luke 6:38) Jesus said it, therefore it must be true!
Ah mih people, there are so many scriptures on sowing and reaping and giving and receiving that I’m confused (smile) and running out of space. So here are the last couple. This from Bruh Paul to the Corinthians: ‘But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully (generously) shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity (compulsion): for God LOVETH a cheerful (joyful) giver.’ (2 Cor. 9:6-7) Just like in the real world your ‘return is determined by your investment.’
And please pay close attention to these immortal words of Bruh Paul to the Galatians. ‘Be not deceived; God is not mocked; for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. 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. 6:7-8) That’s very in your face and to the point my people. So please, let’s spend some of this lazy Saturday pondering our sowing nuh. Forget about the reaping for now, because if we sow good seed, with a good heart, the Lord has promised that we will reap a bountiful harvest. And He is indeed faithful to His promises! Much LOVE!
…you reap what you sow…more than you sow…and later than you sow… (Uncle Charles – Charles Stanley)
03 Nov 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: able to do, above and beyond, all roads lead to, all things work together for good, anything we can ask or think, assurance, by your side, confidence, contemporary Christian music, countless multitudes, distress, don't make this world your home, don't turn, dreams, dry every tear you cry, encouragement, faith, famine, feel the fire, fellowship, from the love of God, gold, hell can't separate us, hopes, humble attitude, I am with you always, I'd be right there, I've prepared a place, in every time of need, in the midst of darkness, Jesus Christ, keep on walking, let this be your light, life's devastation, loneliness, more than conquerors, my grace, my love, my ways confound the wise, nakedness, never walk alone, our Lord and Saviour, penitent heart, peril, persecution, redeem believers, sheep for the slaughter, shiver in the cold, silver, sing with the angels, sufficent, sword, the anchor, the Lord's sanctuary, the Martins, the promise, to enter into rest, to the end of the world, to the right or left, to those who love God, tribulation, walk through chilly Jordan, well laid plans, who shall separate us, you can hold on to, you'll see me face to face, you're gonna make it thru
Romans 8:35. Who shall separate us from the LOVE of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
It’s that day friends, Sunday, when all roads lead to the Lord’s sanctuary, to praise, give thanks and glorify His holy name, with a humble attitude and penitent heart! Yes, it’s time to refuel our hearts, souls, bodies and minds with His word and the encouragement and confidence that the faithful fellowship of like believers brings. And as always, we begin our worship with a song of praise.
Today’s praise offering is simply titled ‘The Promise,’ a wonderful song of contemporary Christian music, as sung by the Martins, that popular Christian Family Trio out of the Southern U.S. So let’s get soulful and sincere as we raise our voices to heaven, letting our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ know how much we LOVE and adore Him, and how grateful we are for all that He’s done for us through His sacrifice on the cross, but also faithfully keeping the promises He made while down here on earth.
In strong voice and sweet harmony, let’s sing: ‘I never said that I would give you silver or gold, Or that you will never feel the fire or shiver in the cold. But I did say you’d never, walk through this world alone… Hnnnn! And I did say, don’t make this world your home. I never said that fear wouldn’t find you in the night, Or that loneliness was something, you’d never have to fight. But I did say, I’d be right there by your side… Thank You sweet Jesus! And I did say, I’d always help you fight. ‘Cause you know I made a promise, that I intend to keep…My grace will be sufficient in every time of need…My LOVE will be the anchor, that you can hold on to. This is the promise…This is the promise, I’ve made to you.
I never said that friends will never turn their backs on you, Or that the world around you wouldn’t see you as a fool. But I did say, like me, you’ll surely be despised. And I did say, my ways confound the wise. I didn’t say you’d never taste the bitter kiss of death, Or have to walk through chilly Jordan to enter into rest, But I did say, I’d be waiting, right on the other side… (yeah, yeah…He is waiting!) And I did say, I’ll dry every tear you cry. ‘Cause you know I made a promise that I’ve prepared a place, and someday, sooner than you think, you’ll see me face to face… And you’ll sing with the angels and the countless multitude. This is the promise…This is the promise, I’ve made to you.
(Talk – I don’t know where you’ve been walking, but I know in life’s devastation, He will pursue you forever. You’ve picked the One who will never let you go! He’s able to do above and beyond anything we can ever ask or think. Hallelujah!) So just keep on walking, don’t turn to the left or right, And in the midst of darkness, let this be your light, That hell can’t separate us, and you’re gonna make it thru… This is the promise…This is the promise, I’ve made to you. ooooooh, this is the promise, I’ve made to you…this is the promise, I’ve made to you…’
Ah mih people, where to begin eh? I really don’t know. Originally I’d thought of finding a scripture for every promise, but when I came to do it, I realized that it would be a humongous task, taking up much more space and time than I have. Anyway, I’ve found a passage of scripture, one that we know really well, that somewhat encompasses all our hopes, dreams, faith and assurance in Christ. Listen to Bruh Paul as he expatiates to the church at Rome.
‘Who shall separate us from the LOVE of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that LOVED us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the LOVE of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.’ (Rom. 8:35-39)
Yeh friends, if we truly believe and trust and surrender our lives to Christ, NOTHING can, or will ever separate us from His eternal and unconditional LOVE! Now check out this explanation from the scholars: ‘8:38-39. We cannot be separated from God’s LOVE, because it is set forth in a person who is God Himself, Jesus Christ, our Saviour. God’s desire to redeem believers cannot be frustrated, because He is infinitely greater than any potential enemy. His plan will be realized because it is his purpose (cf. v.28).’ Who can thwart the well laid plans of the Creator eh? Nobody!
And I’ll spoon feed us, though we know v.28 better than most other verses. (smile) ‘And we know that all things work together for good to those that LOVE God, to them who are the called (the elect, the saints) according to his purpose.’ (Rom. 8:28) Oh faithful saints, as the scholars say, God is working out all things for good, but we who LOVE Him can appreciate it best, because we LOVE Him come what may. Whatever happens doesn’t change our LOVE for Him one iota! And that’s certainly how it ought to be! So let’s go out and show that to a disbelieving the world nuh! Much LOVE!
…and, lo…I am with you always…even unto the end of the world… (Matt.28:20b)
02 Nov 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a chance to change your life, backbone, be deceived, belly, breathe God's air, burst the bottles, change your whole day, change yourself to be stronger, Christ-like, christianity, disguised as hard work, don't fool yuh fat, don't waste time, ever-LOVING God, every new day, everything will work out for good, excellently, faithfully promised, fast, fermentation, Friend Anselm, guiding light, hard work, Jesus, Judaism, life changes to be harder, life enjoys beating us down, make hay while the sun shines, new brooms swep clean, no guarantee of tomorrow, no man, old brooms know the corners, old ways won't open new doors, on an old garment, one positive thought, opportunies, our Lord and Saviour, Phariesses, practices, put new wine in new bottles, puts new wine into old bottles, sew a new piece of cloth, the bottle is ruined, the new faith, the new wine, the old faith, think about Jesus all day, traditionssold foundations, wineskins, with Jesus running our lives, work diligently, work hard
Mark 2:22. And no man putteth new wine into old bottles (wineskins): else the new wine doth burst the bottles, and the wine is spilled, and the bottle will be marred (ruined): but new wine must be put into new bottles.
Oh brother, I can’t believe how dark it is still is in my area at eight o’clock on this early November morning! Not even a wisp of sunlight is showing on the eastern horizon. But the good thing is that it’s not raining…at least not yet. (smile) Nowadays, who knows what the weather will turn out to be on any given day, so it’s best not to worry about it. Just remember that Jesus is our Lord, Saviour and Guiding Light, and once He is in us, and we are in Him, then everything will work out for good eventually, as He faithfully promised! Glory to our great and ever-LOVING God!
And since we said it’s Saturday, I guess it’s time to look at some of the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And the first one says: ‘One small positive thought can change your whole day.’ And that’s the absolute truth my people! And we have the perfect example above, where we just think about Jesus, and our whole day gets brighter! There’s no more positive thought that that! So let’s wake up thinking on Jesus…and during the day think on Him…and go to bed at night…still thinking on Him! Wow! That way our whole day will be positive! (smile)
Now listen to this next quote: ‘Every new day is another chance to change your life.’ I certainly can’t dispute that reasoning, for everyday that we’re given to breathe God’s air, is a new chance to improve our lives. God gives it to us because He knows that we need more time to come to Him, to grow more Christ-like and to complete the work He’s assigned us. So please, let’s not waste every new day that we’ve been so generously given nuh. Instead, as the old people would say, make hay while the sun shines, because you don’t know when the sun will stop shining, neither for how long, and if it isn’t shining, then you certainly can’t make hay. (smile) That means you can’t waste time; you must do whatever you have to do while there’s time – that means today – since there’s no guarantee that we’ll ever see tomorrow. Were the ole people ever so wise my brethren! Wish we were even half as wise.
That brings us to this quote: ‘When life changes to be harder, change yourself to be stronger.’ Ah friends, that’s the only way to survive, for if you don’t get stronger as life gets harder, life will only beat you down. And this life is certainly getting harder, despite all our improvements and amenities. And don’t fool yuh fat either (don’t be deceived), for some reason I can’t fathom, life just enjoys beating us down. I’ve seen it happen often enough in my three score and ten. So you have to possess plenty belly and backbone to live what we call life. You also have to keep improving, keep adding to the strength of your backbone and belly everyday, because life doesn’t ever take a day off, so neither can you. And we all know the best way to do that is by accepting Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour and let him lead and guide our mis-mash lives!
And here’s another area where following Jesus will come in ever so handy. ‘Opportunities are usually disguised as hard work, so most people don’t recognize them.’ Oh my people, is that ever so true! Very few good opportunities are ever easy. I guess by definition they are innately difficult, and in this lazy, selfish, greedy society of ours, hard work is something we don’t relish. We don’t even want to work, much less work hard. That’s why so many glorious opportunities are passing us by in this prosperous society where good opportunities abound…if we’re only willing to work hard at them. Here again, with Jesus running our lives, we will see the opportunities, and we will work diligently and excellently to bring them to fruition. Glory be!
Now here’s the last quote: ‘Old ways won’t open new doors.’ But we still try anyway. As Sister Joyce (Joyce Meyer) likes to say; ‘You can’t keep doing the same thing and expect a different result.’ So we’ve got to stop trying to open new doors with old ways. That brings us to some very interesting words of Jesus when asked by John’s disciples, why they and the Pharisees fasted, but His disciples did not? Apparently the Pharisees fasted twice weekly. He basically answered that fasting is done in times of grief, not of joy, and while He was with them, they were joyful, but when He went back to heaven, that would be the time for grief and fasting. (Mark 2:18-20)
And furthermore, Jesus enlightened them: ‘No man also seweth a piece of new (unshrunk) cloth on an old garment: else the new piece that filled it up taketh (pulls) away from the old, and the rent (tear) is made worse. And no man putteth new wine into old bottles (wineskins): else the new wine doth burst the bottles, and the wine is spilled, and the bottle will be marred (ruined): but new wine must be put into new bottles.’ (Mark2:21-22) Oh friends, how can you not be impressed by Jesus eh, no one else uses simple words and ideas like He does!
And what does all of that mean? Listen to the scholars: ‘2:22. Bottles are wineskins, the old ones figuratively representing Judaism and the new ones Christianity. Old wineskins lose their elasticity and would be burst open by the fermentation of new wine put into them. The point: the old faith of Judaism and the new faith of Christianity cannot be mixed, nor can the practices or traditions (e.g., the time of fasting) of Judaism be forced on Christianity.’ Now that doesn’t mean we have to throw away all that is old, because it’s the old stuff that gives us the true and solid foundations, but if old ways aren’t working, then we do have to try new, but always godly ones. (smile) Much LOVE!
…new brooms sweep clean…but old brooms know the corners…
25 Oct 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a sovereign design, a time, a time to be born, a time to die, according to His purpose, all things, an unpleasant expereince, bring every work into judgement, bring us to our senses, called, Christian, common sense, conclusion, everlasting truth, fear God, fellowship, Friday chant, fun, furthering your glorious kingdom, imbibing food, Jesus Christ, keep his commandments, keep silnet, learned my lesson, our Lord and Saviour, relaxation, renewed and refreshed, rest, sick like a dog, spend quiet time, stir up stife, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, the devil, the duty of man, the Good Book, the Preacher, the weekend, the whole matter, there is a season, time to party, to embrace, to every purpose, to everything, to hate, to love, to plant, to pluck up, to speak, to those who love God, toys at Christmas, under heaven, wisdom, withdraw from intimacy, work together for good, workingman's song
Ecclesiastes 3:1. To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.
Oh man, it seems like I’ve gotten up too early (smile) because it’s still dark outside, and therefore no indication of what the weather will be like. But at least it’s not wet. That’s a good start to this Friday morning. Yeh working people, it’s the day we all look forward to with such eagerness because it signals the end of our work week and the beginning of our weekend! Wow! And short though our weekend might be, we still value and look forward to it like a child does to toys at Christmas. (smile) And nobody looks forward to it like the ordinary workingman.
Hear him joyfully declare: ‘Oh boy, oh boy, TGIF! Thank the Lord is Friday yes! The weekend is here at long last! Time to party again… No, no, no! Hold down on that party scene yes! I still remember last week, at Thanksgiving, when I partied so much, I was sick like a dog the next day! Steups! Got to have a li’l more common sense and doh hit the food and drinks so hard nuh, because I definitely can’t handle another sick like that one.
That was possibly the worse hangover and overeating scene that I’ve ever experienced. Ah Lord eh! I guess that’s why the ole people say to take a little and live long. I certainly wouldn’t be living long if I continue imbibing food and waters like that nuh. Yeh, this weekend go be a quiet one oui. Leave out all that unnecessary stuff…spend some quiet time with the wife and children…that is if they have time for me. (smile) Thank God for Fridays and weekends yes!’
Oh friends, I’m chuckling here because there’s nothing to bring us to our senses like an unpleasant experience! Yeh, I’ve had a few of them in my time, like many of us have, but I eventually learned my lesson, and I don’t over imbibe or over eat anymore because it’s a terribly uncomfortable feeling, one that has you feeling so lousy, sometimes you even want to die.
And that’s why our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ instituted borders in our lives. Unlike what the evil one says, about them being there to cut short our fun, they’re there to keep us safe, to ensure that we don’t go overboard and hurt or destroy ourselves. And that’s why our Friday Chant is not as permissive and loose as the workingman’s song. So let’s chant it now nuh, sombrely remembering the workingman’s predicament. (smile)
As one, in true sincerity: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’ Ah mih Christian breddren, that is not meant to curtail our fun, but to ensure that it’s clean, safe and godly, consequently not giving the devil a chance to get into our business and stir up strife and trouble as is his won’t.
That brings us to our Bit for today, some immortal words of Cousin Sol, writing as the Preacher in Ecclesiastes. ‘To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.’ Now isn’t that an everlasting truth? It certainly is! And Cousin Sol breaks it down for our small minds to understand. (smile) ‘A time to be born (to bear children), and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get (gain), and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend (tear apart), and a time to sew (come together); a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; A time to LOVE, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.’ (Eccl.3:2-8)
Yes friends, there is a time for everything in this life. And I like how the scholars put it. ‘3:1-8. As Solomon reflects on all of life, he expresses in a beautiful poem of 14 pairs of opposite events that God has a sovereign design behind all events (cf. Rom.8:28). To gather stones (v 5) refers to the process of clearing land for planting or building. To hate (v 8) means to withdraw from intimacy and should not always be taken in an absolute sense (cf. Mal.1:2-3).’ It all goes to show that our great and wonderful God didn’t create the world in a reckless or foolish manner, but gave serious thought to it.
That’s why Bruh Paul could say with such confidence: ‘And we know that all things work together for good to them that LOVE God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.’ (Rom. 8:28) If there wasn’t a time and purpose for everything, we would not be able to say that. And we’ll end with Cousin Sol’s take on life itself. ‘Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgement, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.’ (Eccl.12:13-14)
And if you’re a true believer, there’s no way you can refute that conclusion, because that’s what the Good Book says. So now let’s go out and live that kind of life nuh; reverence God, and keep His commandments, for that’s wisdom of the highest level. Much LOVE!
…all things have their time…be they good or bad…
03 Sep 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: abominable sins, all may be one, as I am not of the world, atrocities, back to school, beloved of God, Christian, church leaders, comfotable fannies, denominations, forgiveness, friends of Jesus, go and teach, good news of Christ, help the poor, I am with you always, Jesus Christ, kindness, Labour Day, lead the way to Christ, light of the world, lost, LOVE, mercy, organizational disunity, our Lord and Saviour, our Triune God, prayer, prosperous society, religions, repentance, sactify them, salt of the earth, saltiness, salvation, sects, seek ye first, set them apart, share His love, sinful manner, spiritual unity, summer vacation, Thank You Lord, the body of Christ, the church, the Great Commission, the kingdom of God, the original creation, the re-creation, they are not of the world, thy word is truth, truth, Tuesday Mantra, unconditional LOVE, ungodly
John 17:16. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
And no, yesterday wasn’t a drizzly day like the day before, but it sure was cloudy for a lot of it. That means the Labour Day Monday celebrations weren’t marred by rain and the proceedings could be held outside like it ought to be. However, unfortunately, that also spells the end of the summer vacation period, it’s now back to school and back to work time for the thousands who were merry and carefree all summer long!
And along with that comes a lot of complaining and anxiety as the cold weather and strenuous times of school and work become a reality. (smile) Yeh friends, good things don’t last forever…except the LOVE and salvation of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! And all God’s people said a loud and grateful ‘Thank You Lord!’
Yes my faithful Christian brethren, there’s nothing we should be more thankful and grateful for than the unconditional and amazing LOVE of our Triune God and their even more amazing and awesome promise of salvation to all those who sincerely believe, worship and obey them!
It’s the second greatest thing that has ever happened to mankind! First, there was the original creation, then came the re-creation; the coming of Jesus Christ to earth in human form to save mankind from their abominable sins! Wow! How wonderful, generous and selfless was that eh? Words cannot fully describe it nuh!
And though, on a mental level we sort of understand it, deep down in our hearts we still have some resistance, else we wouldn’t be behaving in the reckless, sinful and ungodly manner that so many of us supposed believers still do. Yeh friends, as the body of Christ, His church, and as individual believers, we simply don’t come up to scratch!
We’re certainly not investing enough of our time, talent and resources in fulfilling Jesus’ Great Commission: ‘Go ye therefore, and teach (make disciples) of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt.28:19-20)
What’s in that not to understand eh friends? Absolutely nothing! We’re supposed to get up off of our fat, lazy, comfortable fannies and spread the good news of Christ’s gospel to all and sundry, save the lost, help the poor, spread LOVE, mercy, kindness and forgiveness! But are we doing that to the best of our ability? Certainly not! In our comfortable and supposedly prosperous society so many are poor, sick, suffering, and still oh so lost!
And does the church, as it’s supposed to, helping as much as it can? Certainly not! The church and its hierarchical system and too many of us supposed believers are too interested in building wealth, power and success as the world sees it. Like we’ve forgotten, or simply choose to ignore, those memorable words of Jesus chocked full of heavenly advice! ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt.6:33)
Oh my people, that is possibly the most important and significant advice that Jesus ever gave us! Our future, our eternal home lies in heaven, not here on earth, consequently we ought to be seeking the things of God, not the things of the world. Remember too that Jesus prayed the Father that He should keep us out of the world, that though we had to be in it to do His bidding, we should not be a part of it.
‘They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them (set them apart) through thy truth: thy word is truth. As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; that they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they may also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.’ (John 17:16-21)
Ah mih people, two thousand years ago, Jesus even prayed for those who would eventually believe in Him, that’s you and me, to be set aside for God’s work, and be one in unity of spirit, so that we could be salt and light in this dark, evil and ungodly world. But we’re not fulfilling His mighty purpose; for whatever reason, too many of us have lost our salty flavour and our batteries need serious recharging!
And the scholars offer these explanations on those verses. ‘17:18. Sent me…sent them means the mission of the church corresponds to that of Christ. Their tasks are alike – in fact, in purpose, and in results, as this prayer shows.’ And so it should be, if we are serious and sincere followers of Jesus Christ! ‘17:21. They…may be one conveys spiritual unity, not organizational unity. (cf. 1 Cor.12:13; 2 Cor.1:11; Eph.2:19; 4:3-16; Heb.10:25).’
Yeh friends, all those scriptures preach unity of spirit and purpose, however organizational unity makes it so much easier to have spiritual unity. And I’m sure that Jesus and Bruh Paul didn’t expect or want us to have so much organizational disunity, with so many religions, denominations, sects and what have you, that obviously causes a serious problem with achieving and attaining spiritual unity! End of sermon!
But seriously though friends, we all know deep down in our hearts and souls that we can ALL come up higher in God’s work, that includes many of the leaders of the church, whose indescribable atrocities are turning more people away from Christ than to Him.
I therefore implore us, if we’re serious about leading people to Christ, let’s clean up our acts nuh, come to the Father in humble and sincere prayer, offer repentance, ask for forgiveness and mercy and help to do better. He will NEVER turn away or not positively answer such heartfelt requests.
Now let’s go home declaring (yehhh!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the whole world know who and whose we are! In strong and sincere voice now: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
So please, please mih people, let’s go out today and do just that nuh! It’s all that Jesus desires of us! Much LOVE!
…the believers duty…to let our saltiness flavour the whole earth…and our lights shine brightly in its darkness…to lead the way to Christ…
23 Aug 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living
Tags: a bit in mih mouth, a good family, a good job, and be glad in it, as far as the east, Bless His Holy Name, bless the Lord, crowns thee, depends solely on us, disobedient children, enables us to get wealth, eternal life, everlasting love, for the oppressed, forget not all his benefits, forgiveness, forgives all thine iniquities, fractionalized, Friday chant, furthering your glorious kingdom, generous help, get priorities right, good times, gracious, Hades, have it more abundatly, heals all thy diseases, heralds the weekend, his acts, in Jesus' name, in soul body and mind, is from the west, Jesus Christ, judgement, leading me around, like a jack, like the eagle's, loving-kindness, made known his ways, merciful, might have life, motives of our hearts, o my soul, our Lord and Saviour, outward actions, redeems thy life, relaxation, removed our trangressions, renewed and refreshed, rest, reverence, righteousness, satisfies thy mouth, slavation, take second place, tender mercies, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, the evil one, the workingman's song, them that fear him, this is the day the Lord has made, thy youth is renewed, time to do as I please, to Moses, to the children of Israel, we are dust, we will rejoice, wisdom, with good things
Psalm 103:2. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.
Happy Friday my people! Now let’s get right into the programme by declaring that it’s the day the Lord has made and we’re supremely glad that we’re alive to rejoice and give thanks for it! Let’s say with Bruh David: ‘Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.’ (Ps.103:1)
Yeh friends, life might be a bit on the rough side sometimes, but I think that only a very few of us are ready and willing to give up this earthly life for the heavenly one that awaits. The basic reasoning being: Oh, we have eternity to enjoy heaven, but only a few short years to enjoy God’s great earth! (smile) And the ordinary workingman totally agrees, as he sings in his weekend song:
‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday oui! The week wasn’t too bad, didn’t work too hard at the slave master’s job, but Friday is Friday! Yuh know what I mean? It heralds the weekend! And that’s definitely my time! My time to do as I please; sleep, eat, get wasted or black up, or whatever I choose to do! It’s the only time that somebody else doesn’t have a bit in mih mouth leading me round like a jack! That’s why I appreciate and enjoy the weekends so much.
And I get time to spend with the family too. Not that I don’t get it during the week, but on the weekend it’s not broken up and fractionalized…Wow! What a way we using big words today sir! (smile) But family is very important. And though you can’t have a good family without a good job, sometimes the job does have to take second place. That’s why we say ‘Thank God for Fridays and the weekends yes!’
Oh friends, the ordinary workingman might not be overly godly, but he’s not foolish either. He has most of his priorities right. Let’s hope that we believers also have our priorities right… but are also righteous and godly! And we’ll see that by how sincere we are as we chant our Friday Chant. Remember the Lord looks at the motives of our hearts, not our outward actions. So altogether now, let’s chant:
‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen!’
Yes my people, we’re not as free and easy as the ordinary workingman. We have certain boundaries set by our Lord and Saviour and Leader, Jesus Christ. Boundaries that hopefully keep the enemy from infiltrating our righteous lives and causing us more problems than we already have.
That’s why we can’t be as blasé and carefree as the unbeliever. But that doesn’t mean we can’t or should not enjoy life, because that’s exactly one of the reasons Jesus gave up His sinless life on the cross; that we might have life, and have it more abundantly. (John 10:10)
All praise and glory be unto our heavenly father for His great, unconventional, unconditional, indescribable and everlasting LOVE for us, His sinful and disobedient children! And that’s why this morning we will wisely and thankfully say like Bruh David did so long ago: ‘Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.’
Wow! Is that ever wisdom in spades my faithful, believing brethren! And if you don’t believe me, then listen to some of the reasons Bruh David gave for his proclamation of thanks and praise. ‘Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with LOVING-kindness and tender mercies; Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.’ (Ps.103: 2-5)
Oh my people, if those aren’t things to greatly rejoice over and give much thanks and praise for to Almighty God, our Creator and heavenly Father, then I don’t know what is nuh! And that’s not all we need to thank and praise Him for nuh! Hear Bruh David as he continues his litany of God’s goodness.
‘The Lord executeth righteousness and judgement for all that are oppressed. He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel. The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous (abounding) in mercy (LOVING-kindness). He will not always chide (strive): neither will he keep his anger for ever.
He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy (LOVING-kindness) toward them that fear (reverence) him. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.’ (Ps.103:6-12)
Oh friends, oh friends, if we’re not thankful for anything else, we should be everlastingly thankful and grateful that the Lord doesn’t deal with us as we deserve, otherwise we’d all be dust and ashes, sweltering in Hades with the evil one himself as our eternal companion!
But thanks be to God that he casts away our sins, and gives us a chance to come to know and accept His Son Jesus Christ, so that we can receive forgiveness and salvation and dwell with Him in heaven, instead of that other disgusting option! (smile) Yeh friends, ‘Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear (reverence) him. For he knoweth our frame (understands our constitution); he remembereth that we are dust.’ (Ps.103:13-14)
And so He should my brethren, because He is the one who created us from the dust of the earth, to which we all must return some day. So please ponder all that we’ve spoken about today and wisely turn to our Creator for whatever we need, because everything in His universe belongs to Him, and He is indeed the One who enables us to get health, wealth and good times! Much LOVE!
…eternal life is a must…but where we spend it…depends solely on us…
01 Aug 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a narrow path, abundance, advice, best interests at heart, bush tea, but by me, charles stanley, choose the best, coconut oil, compassionate heart, concotion, creativity, curse, discipline, dont' have to go it alone, dr robert h schuller, elect the best, eternal life, excellence, feelings, follow faith, generous God, godly advice, gospel truth, holy spirit, Hour of Power Devotional, human flesh rebel, I am the way, immortal wisdom, Jesus Christ, Joseph Addison, Joyce Meyer, leave all the consequences to Him, lovers of pleasure, man's independent nature, narrow, narrow the way, negative word, no man comes to the Father, no matter the price tag, obedience, obey God, obeying God's word, our Lord and Saviour, receive with reluctance, requires discipline, shrivelling up enthusiasm, shun mediocrity, starting your day right, sticks in our craw, strit is the gate, talent, the Life, the Truth, the way of the world, the way to victory, Thursday's Blessings, which leads to life, wsihy-washy
Matthew 7:14. Because strait (how narrow) is the gate, and narrow (difficult or confined) is the way, which leadeth to life, and few there be that find it.
Well it’s the first of August, that means the summer is almost done, one more month, then any number can play. But that’s okay, we can handle it, with Jesus’ help. But today we going to get into a serious concoction in the Bit. Yuh know like in the olden days when you had a cold and fever and your mother just boiled up a whole lot of different bushes and made tea for you, bad, horrible tasting stuff…Ugh!
And she also mixed up a whole lot of different medicines and rubbed your chest and back and forehead with them, and put some coconut oil in your head – will make the cold run down? Hn, hn! We didn’t like it, but it worked. Well that’s what we making here today: a concoction of scripture and good advice. And let’s hope that that will work for us today too. (smile)
Now let’s begin with this most appropriate ingredient from one Joseph Addison (1672-1719), an English essayist, poet, playwright and politician. And he reputedly said that ‘There is nothing which we receive with so much reluctance as advice.’ And that’s gospel truth friends! For there is nothing we dislike more than advice because it suggests that we don’t know what we’re doing.
And even when it’s given with the best interests at heart, and we know it’s the best advice we can get, something though still sticks in our craw, and we don’t really treasure it as we should. I guess though that’s just man’s independent nature showing up, where we don’t like anybody telling us what to do, even though it’s right.
And the next choice ingredient comes from Gramps Schuller (Dr. Robert H. Schuller), from his Hour of Power Devotional, where he sincerely and wisely advises us to: ‘Choose the best, shun mediocrity. Mediocrity has a way of shrivelling up enthusiasm. But commitment to excellence taps an incredible source of energy. Elect the best, no matter what the price tag.’ Wow friends! Pure words of wisdom and mucho good advice and also what Jesus desires of His followers.
But are we going to take it? Hn! Who knows? Because though it’s true and good and wise and of Jesus, there’s just something that sits wrong with us in taking advice. But then I’m only here to bring you wise words and wise, godly advice, so please don’t blame or get annoyed at me, for I’m only the messenger. (smile)
And the last ingredient of our concoction comes from an old Devotional of Sister Joyce (Joyce Meyer) called ‘Starting Your Day Right.’ Could barely make out the name because it’s so old and faded, and the pages are falling apart, so I keep it together with a rubber band, (smile) because I like it’s simple, down to earth style. Can’t take all this new-fangled stuff.
Anyhow, Sister Joyce gives this wonderful advice at the end of one of the devotionals. ‘The way to victory is a narrow path that requires discipline regardless of our feelings. Sometimes it may look too narrow to even squeeze through. But victory comes by obeying God’s Word to us, in spite of our feelings. Follow faith, not feelings today.’
Mama Mia! What wonderful advice! What godly advice! And are we going to take it my brethren? I surely hope so, because as she so rightly says, we can only get victory by obeying God’s Word, and it takes a strong and sincere faith to do so, not wishy-washy feelings, like so many of us live by.
And that’s why, Jesus, in His immortal wisdom, knowing that too many of us live by our wishy-washy feelings, directed us to ‘Enter ye in at the strait (narrow) gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat.’ (Matt.7:13)
Oh my people, how true that is in these ungodly times. People are just ‘LOVERS of pleasure,’ as Bruh Paul told Timothy. (2 Tim.3:4) And like foolish sheep without a shepherd, are all blindly headed for the precipice of damnation! But thankfully precious people, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is a good, kindly and caring shepherd and he takes wonderful care of His own. But His own also have to listen to His voice, else they too will go astray on the wide and destructive path.
And He says to us: ‘Because strait (how narrow) is the gate, and narrow (difficult or confined) is the way, which leadeth to life, and few there be that find it.’ Yes friends, those are words we have to pay serious attention to, because if we want to live and work for Jesus and eventually gain eternal life with Him, then we can’t go the way of the world. We have to follow the straight and narrow path that calls for obedience, discipline and excellence.
And we all know those are things against which our human flesh naturally rebel, which means calling forth a superhuman effort if we have to do it alone. But thankfully we don’t have to do it alone! Jesus Christ foresaw our problems and wisely gave us the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us in His ways! Glory to God! We’re not alone…will never be alone once we stay in Jesus’ fold!
And let’s remember friends, that Jesus is both the way that leads to life, and also the life. As He said to doubting Thomas: ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.’ (John 14:6) Please my people, let’s write those words indelibly in our hearts, minds, bodies and souls, because they are ever so important for our life-long journey.
Now let’s go home declaring (yeh!) those Thursday Blessings the Lord has so generously lavished on us nuh so we can do His work. In strong and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!
I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’
Oh my people, what a generous God we serve and worship! Now let’s go out and share those blessings with the less fortunate as Jesus intends for us to do, and not selfishly hoard them for ourselves. Yes, I’ve got to remind us, else we tend to forget. (smile) And let’s hope that the concoction we made up today also works, because we all need it badly! Much LOVE!
…the best way to live life…obey God…and leave all the consequences to Him… (Uncle Charles – Charles Stanley)
26 May 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a song of praise, all that labour, Amazing grace, as I live from day to day, but couldn't find, come unto me, Crying in the Chapel, deceitful world, find the way, gentle, get down on your knees and pray, give I unto you, go to pray, harmonious songbird, heavy laden, holy spirit, humble, humble people, I prayed the Lord, I will give you rest, I'd grow stronger, I'm happy with the Lord, I've searched, in limbo, Jesus Christ, Jesus is the answer, learn from me, let not your heart be troubled, lighten our souls, lightning, live and work for Jesus, meek, my burden light, my peace I give unto you, my yoke is easy, neither be afraid, no way on, not as the world giveth, our Lord and Saviour, peace, Peace i leave with you, people are of one accord, Satan, simplicity, take your troubles, tears of joy, the great invitation, the Lord's Day, the meaning of contentment, the Sabbath, thunder, to gain peace of mind, to sing and praise the Lord, to the chapel, touching, truth, truthful, unburden your heart, we gather in the chapel, weighed down, with a vengeance, your burdens will be lighter
John 14:27. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
And the rain fell with a vengeance, for much of the day! And it wasn’t the measly drizzle we’d been getting for the last li’l while, but full blown showers accompanied by booming claps of Thor’s thunder and threatening bolts of fiery lightning! The sun would come out for a li’l while and you’d think, ‘Yes, the rain’s over!’ But that would be a wasted thought, for shortly thereafter the rain would come pouring down again. Chuh!
And that’s the worst kind of rainfall, because it just leaves you in limbo, never knowing what it’s going to do! But the good thing is that was yesterday, Saturday, today is Sunday, a different day completely, so let’s hope the weather will be different too. (smile) And it looks different, bright, but with some scudding clouds.
But even if it’s the same, please, don’t let us allow it to stop us from gathering in the Lord’s sanctuary to celebrate His day, the Sabbath, to give Him praise and thanks, to hear His faithful and wonderful Word, and receive His enabling blessings, without which we can’t successfully navigate the storms and trials of this earthly life. And as always, we’ll begin the celebrations with a song of praise and worship to lighten our souls and prepare our hearts to hear His Word.
And today’s song is a fairly new one, written in the second half of the 20th century, by one Artie Glenn, but was popularized by one Elvis Presley. So let’s get serious, soulful and sincere as we raise up our voices in praise and thanksgiving to heaven, through the words of ‘Crying In The Chapel’ It’s a soulful morning friends, so let’s feel it in our hearts and souls and trill as one harmonious songbird. (smile)
‘You saw me crying in the chapel, The tears I shed were tears of joy, Now I know the meaning of contentment, And I’m happy with the Lord. Just a plain and simple chapel, Where humble people go to pray. I prayed the Lord that I’ll grow stronger, As I live from day to day. I’ve searched (I’ve searched) and I’ve searched, But I couldn’t find, No way on earth to gain peace of mind.
But now I’m happy in the chapel, where people are of one accord (One accord). Yes, we gather in the chapel, Just to sing and praise the Lord. Oh you’ll search, and you’ll search, but you’ll never find, No way on earth to gain peace of mind. Take your troubles to the chapel, get down on your knees and pray, Then your burdens will be lighter, and you’ll surely find the way, Yes, you’ll surely find the way!’
People oh people! Such simple but heartrending words of absolute truth! Wow! And we sung it so sweetly that all heaven was moved to tears! Don’t you just like it when we move all heaven to tears? Of course, because it means that we’ve done something, touching, sincere and truthful! That calls for another ‘Wow!’ this auspicious Sunday morning.
But on a serious note though, it’s certainly amazing how the sentiments in such a short and simple song could be so true. For example; the tears many of us shed when we go to church are usually ones of joy, because something happens within our souls and spirits and we’re lifted up, we become contented through the power of the Holy Spirit flowing through us and renewing and refreshing us.
And yuh know what? We don’t have to go to no big cathedral to search for God and pray, because we’ll find Him just as well in a simple chapel, where the folks are humble, because that’s one of the requirements of coming to Him in prayer. And we not asking for a whole lot usually – well some of us are (smile) but simply to grow stronger each day as we live in the presence of God’s amazing grace.
And yuh better believe that there is no other way of finding peace on this ungodly earth than through the auspices of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! That’s for sure! As He unambiguously told the disciples, and consequently us: ‘Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.’
Yes friends, the peace we get from Jesus is nothing like what this world has to offer; it’s an out of this world kind of peace, that ONLY He possesses and ONLY He can bestow! And that’s why we end up being contented and cry tears of joy in the chapel! And the best piece of advice there is to take ALL your troubles to God’s sanctuary, or really anywhere quiet and convenient, get down on your knees and pray; unburden your heart before Him, and He will lift your burdens and show you the way.
Just listen to Jesus as He makes this wonderful offer to ALL those who are weighed down and burdened nuh. We call it the 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 (gentle) and lowly (humble) in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt.11:28-30)
How can you ever beat that offer eh friends? Nobody has ever offered anything even close to it. And yes, I do know that when things seem too good to be true, they usually are, but that’s in the lying and deceitful world of Satan, not in Jesus’ realm! He is God and has no cause to lie! And better still, He also has the power to perform whatever He promises! All praise and glory to His Holy Name! That’s why this song, ‘Crying in the Chapel’ is so perfect in its simplicity and truth!
Oh how I wish more of us supposed believers would take hold of the simplicity of Jesus’ message and just run with them! It would make all of our lives so much easier. Our Lord and Saviour is not a complicated man, and His pronouncements are not complicated either. All He asks of us is to believe and obey! Is that so hard to do my people? Not at all!
So this Sunday morning, let’s take a serious and sincere stand nuh promise ourselves to just live and work for Jesus, in whatever manner He desires of us! That’s the unadulterated, God-given wisdom of heaven, by which earth should be guided! Much LOVE!
…to whatever question you might ask…Jesus is the answer…
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