14 Apr 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a battle between the forces of good and evil, a crown of righteousness, a tough nut to crack, a true believer, be glad also with exceeding joy, be reproached for the name of Christ, being constant in prayer, blasphemed, blessed are you, Christian fellowship, companionship in sorrow, depressing times, discomfort, disobeyed your word, divine aid, ease the pain, endure tough times, establishes the most intimate and lasting of ties, ethical death, exceeding joy, experience Christ's resurrection power, faith, finished my course, finished my race, for the prize of the high calling in God, fortunate to have a job, fought a good fight, getting to know Christ better, give thanks to Jesus, happy are ye, heavenly Father, holy spirit, humble ourselves, humble servants, I press toward the mark, in times of need, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, keep pressing forward, keep your promise to prosper us, kept the faith, laid up for me, living for Jesus, LOVE, made more comformable to his death, make things right, mass confusion in our world, meditating on the scriptures, mercy, no sunday afternoon stroll, now ready to be offered, obtain a personal relationship with Christ, of the many suffering from negative situations, on their part he is evil spoken of, on your part he is glorified, one more day of life, physical death, Praise the Lord, pray, provide solace and comfort, rejoice, salvation, shall give me at that day, share in Christ's sufferings, show them your awesome grace and mercy, show this evil world, sincere repentance in our hearts, sincerely seek your face, smarten up, standing up for Jesus, stay close to Jesus, strong faith in Christ, suffer injustice for Christ's sake, suffer insults for Christ's sake, that I may know him, the fellowship of his sufferings, the fiery trial, the God who heals, the most intimate of ties, the only one, the power of his resurrection, the power that raised Christ from the dead, the power to solve our problems, the powers that be, the rewards are worth ipain, the righteous judge, the righteousness of God, the spirit of glory rests on you, the stormy winds of life howl around us, the throne of grace, the time of my departure is at hand, think it not strange, to alleviate our problems, truth, turn from our evil ways, unashamedly taking place, unnecessary purge, unto all them that love his appearing, walking with Jesus, we have all sinned, when his glory shall be revealed, wisdom, wise guidance, with each passing day, ye are partakers of Christ's suffering
Philippians 3:10. That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death.
One more Monday, one more day of life! And those of us who are fortunate enough to have jobs to go to in these distressing and depressing times have better say ‘Praise the Lord!’ instead of complaining about the dreariness and frustration that the job might cause, for there are many who would take your jobs in a jiffy, as they have recently lost theirs in the current unnecessary purge that’s so unashamedly taking place. And it’s only going to get worse if the powers that be don’t smarten up and make things right.
That’s why we always have to give thanks to Jesus and stay close to Him, for He’s the ONLY ONE who can provide solace and comfort when the stormy winds of life howl around us. Yes, we ought to be saying like Bruh Paul did to the Philippians: ‘That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death.’ (Phil.3:10)
And the scholars give this explanation of that verse. ‘This verse may also be paraphrased : “In order that I may personally know Him, that I might both experience His resurrection power and share in His sufferings, and thus I will be more conformed to His death.” Paul wants “the righteousness … of God (vs. 9) so that he can obtain a personal relationship with Jesus in actual day-to-day experience. This knowledge of Christ is obtained by experiencing in daily problems, needs, ministry, and so forth, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead.
Knowing Christ also entails participating in His sufferings. Paul desires to share in the Lord’s sufferings because they bring him into a deeper and more meaningful relationship with Him; companionship in sorrow establishes the most intimate and lasting of ties, as afflicted hearts cling to each other.
The result of participating in Christ’s suffering is that Paul is being made like Him in death. This word “death” has double meaning here, including inward and outward, ethical and physical death. As Jesus died in regard to sin on the cross, so Paul is doing more and more in his daily life. As Jesus was bodily slain, so the apostle, should Caesar’s verdict go against him, is prepared to be slain.’
Now, that is truly wanting to know Jesus! And thankfully, not all of us will be called to suffer on His behalf as Bruh Paul was. However, we all will have to endure some tough times if we are serious about living for Jesus. That’s just the way it is! There’s no other name in the world that can cause as much commotion and arguments than the name of Jesus.
So, if you intend to be a true believer, then you’d better prepare yourself to go through some stuff you won’t like. But the good thing about standing up for Jesus, is that the rewards are wonderful and certainly worth the pain and discomfort we might have to endure. Remember walking with Jesus is no Sunday evening stroll in the park, but a serious battle between the forces of evil and those of good.
Thus Peter wrote to the Jewish diaspora: ‘Beloved , think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as (to the extent that) ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. If ye be reproached (insulted) for the name of Christ, happy (blessed) are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of (blasphemed), but on your part he is glorified.’ (1 Pet. 4:12-14)
Yes friends, we will all suffer insults and injustices for Christ’s sake, and it’s not always easy to overlook them, but we have to, with the thought that we are suffering for His sake, and therefore glorifying Him. Consequently we need to do as Bruh Paul later said to the Philippians: ‘I press toward the mark (goal) for the prize of the high (upward) calling of God in Christ Jesus.’ (Phil. 3:14) That means we have to keep pressing forward, getting to know Christ better with each passing day, by meditating on the scriptures, being constant in prayer and Christian fellowship.
So that at the end we can say like Bruh Paul said to Timothy. ‘For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure (death) is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course (race), I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that LOVE his appearing.’ (2 Tim. 4:6-8)
Yes my faithful brethren, being a good and true disciple of Jesus is a tough nut to crack, but we can certainly do it, especially when we have the help of His Holy Spirit that indwells us. So, let’s do as we are commanded to in times of need; confidently but humbly go to the throne of grace in prayer. And we’ll do that through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn.
Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
And we can see from our prayer itself, that there are some things we need to do to receive divine aid, like humbling ourselves, praying and sincerely seeking God’s face. So please, let’s be wise and get to doing them nuh, so that we will be blessed with God’s awesome grace and mercy and forgiveness! Much LOVE!
…only as we sincerely seek to be more like Jesus…will we ever become more like Him…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
29 Aug 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: abundance, according to his excellent greatness, afraid, all things work together for good, at the hand of God, Bible, called according to His purpose, christianity, climate change, courage, creativity, Creator, curse, divine protection, duty bound, faith, faults and foibles, generously share our blessings, god, god of all comfort, God will help us fix whatever is wrong, help me understand everything in my heart, in the firmament of his power, In Touch Devotional, Jesus Christ, let everything that hath breath praise the Lord, LOVE, mercy, negative word, not receive evil, praise God in his sanctuary, praise him for his mighty acts, Praise the Lord, Praise ye the Lord, promotion, prosper and succeed, receive us with loving arms, shall we receive good, shout Hallelujah, supernatural wisdom, sustainer, talent, the Great God Jehovah, Thursday Blessings, to them that love God, true believers in Christ, trust, truth, upon the loud cymbals, what I'm afraid to see, what I've never noticed, what is pure and good, what's holding me back, wisdom, with stringed instruments and organs, you'll never leave me to face anything alone, your truth sets me free
Psalm 150:6. Let every thing that hath breath, praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord (shout Hallelujah).
Sorry Friends, but today, Thursday, the penultimate day of our work week, doesn’t look like it will live up to the summer image of the last few days, sunny and warm. In fact, it’s been forecasted to be somewhat cool and cloudy. And though we’d like every day of the summer season to be seasonally summer, (smile) we know that’s not always possible, especially with the vagaries of climate change, it’s unpredictable, unexpected behaviour.
And furthermore, since we are true believers in Christ Jesus, we understand as Job says to his wife: ‘What? shall we receive (accept) good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive (accept) evil (calamity)?’ (Job 2:10) That’s a very good question my people, but we can accept the tough things that will happen in this life to all of us, because we also believe these words of Bruh Paul to the church at Rome. ‘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)
Yes, in the long run, eventually, our great God will work everything out for our good, so we don’t have to worry too much about what happens in our daily lives. And here’s a prayer that can certainly help us to reduce our anxieties as we go about God’s business. It’s the prayer from the In Touch Devotional for this month.
So please pray with me: ‘God, sometimes I feel stuck and hesitate to talk to you about it. Maybe I’m afraid of what You’ll say. Give me the courage to pray these words: Father, help me understand everything in my heart – what is pure and good, what’s holding me back, what I’ve never noticed, and what I’m afraid to see. Help me remember Your truth sets me free and you’ll never leave me to face anything alone. I trust You, God of all comfort. In Jesus’ name, amen.’
Oh friends, is there ever a lot of truth and reassurance in that simple prayer! And by the way, we don’t need courage to go to God, just faith and trust, because we know He’s made it so we can come to Him at any time with anything. Even when we’re so low down, we believe we cannot get any lower, all we have to do is turn to him and pour out our hearts, for He will understand and receive us with LOVING arms.
Remember, the Lord created us and He knows all of our faults and foibles, so nothing we do or happens to us, is news to Him. He just desires us to come to Him with all of our problems, be they big or small, because He enjoys taking an active part in our lives… all parts of them. So whatever is holding us back today, let’s go to God and pour it our to him. He LOVES to listen to us, and will help us fix what ever is wrong.
And as the prayer says, His truth sets us free, and He’ll NEVER leave us to face anything alone, because He’s a most faithful and trustworthy God, of LOVE, comfort, peace and joy! And all God’s children gave out a loud and grateful shout of ‘Praise the Lord! Praise Him for his goodness and mercy to the undeserving children of men!’ And that just dovetails right into these amazing words of praise from Psalm 150. So let’s get right into it:
‘Praise ye the Lord (shout Hallelujah). Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power (his mighty heavens). Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet (cornet): praise him with the psaltery (lute or lyre) and harp. Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. Let every thing that hath breath, praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord (shout Hallelujah).’ (Ps. 150. 1-6)
And isn’t that the god-awesome truth! Everything that has breath ought to praise the Lord, their Creator and Sustainer! Shout Hallelujah to Him in His high heaven and give Him thanks and praise for the marvellousness of His great creation; heaven and earth, the seas, and all that therein is!
What an amazing God we serve my people! One who can do any and everything. Just look at how His creation earth, heaven, the seas, Mother Nature run, like clockwork, without any help. Who else can create such an amazing entity eh? No One but the great God Jehovah, he of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! That’s why we ought to worship and praise him with all of our hearts, souls, bodies and minds, for without Him, we’re nothing!
And although we don’t deserve His awesome generosity, He still bestows it on us, for example in what we call our Thursday Blessings, given to help do His earthly work. So, let’s activate them now by declaring (chuh!!!) them. As one strong and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline!
I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration (yesss!!!) we’re now duty bound to go out and use those blessings in the same generous manner to help others less fortunate. Much LOVE!
…there’s only ONE TRUE GOD…JEHOVAH…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
27 Aug 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a learned behaviour, affections and lusts, be desirous of vain glory, Bible, bounden duty, Christ in us, christianity, conceited, crucified the flesh, encying one another, faith, faithfulness, goodness, greed, holy spirit, how to abound, how to be abased, hurry, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me, I have learned, in god's eyes, in whatsoever state I am, jealousy, Jesus Christ, joy, kindness, live humbly, live in prosperity, LOVE, not that we are sufficient of ourselves, our sufficiency is of God, pateince, peace, Praise the Lord, prayer, provoking one another, ready for battle, self-control, selfishness, share His love with my neighbour, speak in respect of want, spiritual armour, suffer need, telling it like it is, the beloved of God, the fruit of the spirit, the mature Christian, the same bringeht forth much fruit, therewith to be content, trust my friend Jesuss, truth, Tuesday Mantra, wisdom, without me ye can do nothing, worry
Philippians 4:13. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.
Ah friends, this Tuesday, the last one in August, is shaping up to be another glorious summer’s day! Praise the Lord! For, come September, who knows what’s going to happen. But the good thing about being a believer in Jesus Christ is that we know we can handle whatever comes against us, especially if we are wearing His spiritual armour and draped up in prayer! Then we’re ready for battle on all and any front!
Remember these fighting words of Bruh Paul to the Philippians: ‘Not that I speak in respect of want (in regard of need): for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased (live humbly), and I know how to abound (live in prosperity): every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.’ (Phil. 4:11-13)
Yes friends, through Christ’s strength flowing in us we can learn how to live both in want and in prosperity. But please note it’s a learned behaviour, it doesn’t just happen automatically or overnight, you have to work at it, and with the strength of Jesus buoying you up. Ah mih bredrin, it’s so wonderful to know that with Christ’s strength behind us we can do any and everything!
But we also need to notice the opposite end of the spectrum as Christ so wisely pointed out to the disciples: ‘I am the vine, ye are the branches: he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.’ (John 15:5) And that’s telling it like it is my people! With Christ we can do anything, but by the same token, without Him, we cannot do anything!
That means Christ is essential, a real necessity in our lives, we’re absolutely nothing without Him. As Bruh Paul adds in 2 Corinthians: ‘Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;’ (2 Cor. 3:5) And that you cannot deny!
That brings us to this interesting remark in that scripture from John where Christ talks about those who believe in Him bearing much fruit. There He’s talking about the fruit of the Spirit which flourishes, or is supposed to flourish in true believers in Christ. And Bruh Paul explains the Fruit of the Spirit thus to the Galatians: ‘But the fruit of the Spirit is LOVE (the willing sacrificial giving of oneself to another without thought of return), joy (gladness of heart), peace (tranquility of mind), longsuffering (patience), gentleness (kindness), goodness (generosity), faith (faithfulness), Meekness (courtesy and consideration), temperance (self-control): against such there is no law.’ (Gal. 5:22-23)
Yes friends, there are nine things that are considered the Fruit (not fruits) of the Spirit. And as we’re on the subject, we might as well get some explanations from scholars. (smile) They say: ‘The word fruit is significant for three reasons. (1) It means the result, product, outcome, or effect produced by the Spirit in the believer’s life. (2) Unlike the “gifts of the Spirit” (plural), only some of which are given to a Christian, each believer is to have all nine virtues composing “the fruit of the Spirit” (singular) (3) As fruit on a tree takes time to grow and mature, so the Spirit does not cultivate these virtues in the believer overnight.’
Oh yes my fellow believers, unlike the gifts of the Spirit, like prophecy, the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, the gifts of healing, the interpretations of tongues etc. (1 Cor. 12) of which we might get a few, if we’re truly blessed, (smile) with the fruit of the Spirit it’s expected that all of those nine virtues will eventually blossom in the mature Christian!
And believe me, that’s no easy task, especially when you’re continually hounded by the devil and his evil cohorts to do wrong. But as we said before, with Christ on our side, and our willingness to learn and sacrifice on His behalf, then we can certainly attain that goal of having all nine fruit of the Spirit flourish in us.
Then, Bruh Paul follows up the definition of the Fruit of the Spirit with these poignant and most pertinent words. ‘And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections (its passions) and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vain glory (conceited), provoking one another, envying one another.’ (Gal. 5: 24-26)
Yes my fellow saints, once we’re born again believers in Christ, it is then expected that we’re to throw away all our old satanic vices and adopt the fruit of the Spirit. That means both living and walking in the Spirit, or as the scholars explain: ‘since the Spirit gave us new life at conversion, we then should stay in step with His leading and promptings throughout life.’ And paying sincere and close attention to the guidance of the Holy Spirit is the only way to have that fruit flourish in us, to stop us from being greedy, selfish, materialistic and all the other wrong things that the world considers right.
Now, having refreshed our minds and spirits on those important topics, let’s go home declaring our Tuesday mantra, letting all and sundry know to whom we belong, lock, stock and barrel. As one strong and sincere voice: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with my immediate neighbours, as well as with the whole wide world! Glory be!’
And having made that declaration, it then becomes our bounden duty to go out and share the amazing LOVE and friendship of Christ with others, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…only when we’re in Christ…and Christ is in us…are we truly powerful…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
22 Aug 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: according to his riches in glory, all the tools, all these things shall be added unto you, became obedient unto death, Bible, chaos, children of God, christianity, climate change, courage, creativity, curse, divine protection, even the death of the cross, faith, favour, good health, handle whatever comes against us, have good success, human reasoning, humbled himself, in the form of God, Jesus, Jesus Christ, know who we are in Christ, let this mind be in you, LOVE, made himself of no reputation, made in the likeness of men, make thy way prosperous, meditate therein day and night, meditation on the word of God, my God shall supply all your needs, negative word, no need to boast, obeying God's word, observe to do all that's written therein, one truth fron the Bible is worth more than all the wisdom of man, Praise the Lord, refuse to go to God, satanic reasoning of men, seek ye first the kingdom of God, shall not depart out of thy mouth, spiritual things are wiser than carnal ones, tempestuous world, the essence to success, the form of a servant, the light of the world, the salt of the earth, the spiritual reasoning of God, this book of the law, true believers in Christ, truth, where the true answer lies, wisdom
Joshua 1:8a. This book of the law shall not depart out of (be constantly in) thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night,
Where has all the hot weather gone, in this August month eh? You’d think it was September! Yes friends, this past week has been sunny but rather chilly in my neck of the woods, no use whatsoever for the A/C. It’s tough to even get the daytime temperature in to the early twenties, much less the thirty we expect in mid August. The windows are also closed at night, for fear of freezing. (smile) The scenario is not helped either by the ever constant, vibrant, cool wind that accompanies it. I guess this is one of the effects of climate change. Let’s hope then that in September and October, we’ll have the hot weather that we’re missing right now. (smile)
But thankfully, as true believers in Christ Jesus, we have all the tools to handle whatever comes against us. And all God’s people said a loud and grateful: ‘Praise the Lord!’ And yes, He does deserve much thanks and praise for all that He’s done, is doing and has promised to do on our behalf! He’s provided us with EVERYTHING we need to make a good go of it in this crazy and tempestuous world.
And the first and most important thing, is as the Lord told Joshua in no uncertain terms when He made him leader of the Israelites after the death of Moses. ‘This book of the law shall not depart out of (be constantly in) thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.’ (Josh. 1:8)
Oh my people, right there is the very essence to success! Meditation on the word of God, then putting what it says into practice! Not all the nonsense that the world writes about success. None of those books on so-called success and prosperity can even come close to what one can gain by reading, studying, and putting the Lord’s word into practice!
But we blatantly refuse to accept what the Creator of the world and the One who allows us to get wealth says, in foolish favour of what sinful and ignorant man writes! Please remember that ONE truth from God’s word is worth more than ALL the wisdom of man. As Bruh Paul puts it to the church at Corinth: ‘Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.’ (1 Cor, 1:25)
And what does that mean? Listen to this commentary. ‘When Paul speaks of the “foolishness of God,” he is not implying that God is foolish. Rather he is saying that since God’s way of reasoning is in accord with things of the spirit, it confounds the reasoning of this world. It is wiser than human reasoning, because spiritual things are wiser than carnal ones.’ And that’s exactly why our world is in such a disastrous and chaotic state! We have not been listening to the spiritual reasoning of God, but to the carnal, Satanic reasoning of men! And what else can you expect from a satanic soul eh, but total chaos and strife, because that’s the very nature of Satan!
Remember too that Jesus backed up that scripture in Joshua, when he told His listeners: ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:33) That’s God’s indisputable and faithful promise! If you seek the things of His kingdom, then all that you need will be given to you. And God has no need to lie, because with His omnipotence, He can do exactly what He says! And Bruh Paul also promised in his epistle to the Philippians, that our needs will be met when we sincerely seek the Lord and serve Him. ‘But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.’ (Phil. 4:19)
What more do we want or expect eh my brethren? And it’s not like there aren’t oodles of believers who are living comfortably while obeying God’s word, but most of them don’t have to bray or boast about their possessions, because that’s not the attitude of true believers. We ought to go about our business without too much fuss, working for the Lord, being the salt of the earth and light of the world, enjoying whatever He blesses us with, and sharing it with others who are less blessed.
Jesus was the Son of God, could do miracles and anything else He so desired, but He didn’t go around boasting about it. In fact He took the opposite attitude, that of a servant, gave up all his privileges. As Bruh Paul writes to the Philippians. ‘Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. And being found in fashion (appearance) as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.’ (Phil. 2:5-8)
Yes my fellow believers, Jesus was the greatest, but He never boasted about it, because He was sure of Himself. He knew who He was, and let it show in His works, rather than in His boasts. It ought to be the same way with us: when we know who we are in Christ, are sure that we’re the children of God, then we don’t need to boast about it, but just show it in how we live our daily lives. And we can never be sure that we’re children of God until and unless we read, meditate and put God’s Word into practice in our daily lives. It’s as simple as that my people!
And what amazes me about mankind in these turbulent times, is that we’re trying everything we know in man’s lexicon to make things better without any success, but for whatever reason, we simply refuse to go to God, where the answer truly lies. Sadly, such is the hold that Satan has on us. But for those of us who are trying to live right, lets’ go home declaring (chuh!!!) and thus activating our Thursday Blessings, generously bestowed by the Lord to do His earthly work.
As one strong voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!
I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration (steups!!!) it now behooves us to go out and share the benefits of those blessings with others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us! Much LOVE!
…Success 101…read, meditate and put into practice…God’s Word…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
03 Aug 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a lesson in every situation, a pox on the judges!, antidote for life's problems, barren womb, better not to vow than vow and not pay, Bible, Christian, delay not to pay it, exalt the horn of his anointed, Exhibition Stadium, faith, girded with strength, Hannah's Prayer, he hath no pleasure in fools, heaven-sent gentleman, I rejoice in thy salvation, inherit the throne of glory, irresponsible judges, Jesus Christ, judge the ends of the earth, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, let not arrogancy come out of thy mouth, lifeth up the beggar from the dunghill, LOVE, mediocre show, my heart rejoiceth in the Lord, my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies, no rock like our God, Praise the Lord, salvation, Steelband Competition, the barren hath borne seven, the bows of the mighty men are broken, the Lord is a God of knowledge, the Lord maketh poor and he maketh rich, the Lord moves in mysterious ways, the Lord will keep the feet of his saints, there is none holy as the Lord, they that stumbled, total disrepect for patrons, truth, when thou vowest a vow to God, wisdom
1 Samuel 2:1. And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in the Lord: my mouth is enlarged over (smiles at) mine enemies; because I rejoice in thy salvation.
Well friends, it’s our lazy-day Saturday, and I took full advantage of it this morning after the horrible evening I had last evening attending the Steelband Competition in Toronto. Ah Lord eh, what a nightmare. First of all, just at the entrance to the city, the traffic was horrendous because of road construction. Then, the new location for the Carnival is in the heart of the big Exhibition Stadium, where several activities were scheduled for the same time, and with several roads closed within the stadium, moving around and parking was another disaster.
Then, when you were finally directed to a parking spot on the grass, with cars packed close together, you had to walk at least a quarter mile to the entrance of the show we wanted to attend. But who says the Lord doesn’t work in mysterious ways, for halfway there, a heaven-sent gentleman offered a middle aged woman and us two old men a ride in his golf-cart. Praise the Lord!
Now that was the good part, for when you got into the show you found that the stands were situated behind the judges and the D.J, and both of them had canopies covering them, so you could not see the full stage, which was in front of them. You either had to sit right down at the very front on the first couple of rows, or go to one end of the stand or the other to see anything. I went to the left side of the judges’ placement, which means I didn’t see the right side of any of the seven bands that performed.
It was such a total disrespect to the patrons who were paying their hard earned money to see a mediocre show in the first place, because only about three or four bands really deserved to be there. Our West Indian community has put on some bad shows in our time, but I’ve never seen such total disrespect for the patrons before. And in talking to the duchess this morning, it was apparently the same way with the King and Queen Show the night before.
And the seven, middle-aged to elderly West Indian men who were the judges just sat in their comfortable seats with no sun shining down on them, oblivious to the sad plight of the paying people! A pox on you judges, who have all been involved in entertainment in the city over the years! You should have been big and responsible enough to speak up and have the covering removed, and not be simply concerned with your own comfort.
Then when the competition was over, you had the long walk back to your car, if you could find it in the crazy maze of cars parked all over the grounds. And the sad part is that instead of driving, we spoke about taking the Go-train which stops at the Exhibition grounds, but figured that the last train home would be too early, and we would have to leave before the show was over, which turned out to be untrue. It’s the earliest I’ve ever seen the show finish; shortly after eleven o’clock.
Anway, if the venue for this Competition is the same place next year, God spare life, I won’t be there! I know they won’t miss me, but neither will I miss the terrible organizing that has characterized West Indian promotions in this city for the last fifty odd years. End of my griping! (smile)
Now let’s offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer with heartfelt sincerity. As one voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
Yes Lord, thank you for the calm and peace that you’re sending into my soul, as I contemplate the events of last evening. I know there is a lesson somewhere in there for me, please help me to see it and learn it. Yes friends, in every situation we encounter, there’s a lesson embedded there for us, that’s how our Lord moves. The problem though, is for us to discern that lesson and then action it in our lives. So please pray that I will be able to discern whatever it was the Lord desires to teach me, in allowing yesterdays fiasco to happen. (smile)
And as for today’s scriptural lesson, I just opened the Good Library and it opened to Hanah’s Prayer and Song, that’s the prophet Samuel’s mother, as she gave her son Samuel to the duty of Lord, as she had vowed if the Lord heard her prayer and opened her barren womb. And it’s a perfect prayer or song for us to sing today and every day. So let’s pray or sing it, whichever you prefer. (smile)
‘And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in the Lord: my mouth is enlarged over (smiles at) mine enemies; because I rejoice in thy salvation. There is none holy as the Lord: for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our God. Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogancy (arrogance) come out of your mouth: for the Lord is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed. The bows of the mighty men are broken, and they that stumbled are girded with strength.
They that were full have hired out themselves for bread; and they that were hungry ceased (to hunger): so that the barren hath borne seven; and she that hath many children is waxed feeble. The Lord killeth, and maketh alive: he bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up. The Lord maketh poor, and maketh rich: he bringeth low, and lifteth up. He raiseth up the poor our of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar form the dunghill, to set them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory: for the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s, and he hath set the world upon them.
He will keep the feet of his saints, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness; for by strength shall no man prevail. The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken to pieces; out of heaven shall he thunder upon them: the Lord shall judge the ends of the earth; and he shall give strength unto his king, and exalt the horn (strength) of his anointed. And Elkanah (Samuel’s father) went to Ramah to his house. And the child did minister (serve) unto the Lord before Eli the priest.’ (1 Sam. 2:1-11)
Yes my fellow believers that’s the kind of faith and prayer life we should have! Hannah prayed sincerely to have a son as she was undergoing torment in her barren life, and vowed that if the Lord heard her prayed she would enlist him in the Lord’s service. And that’s exactly what she did. Unlike many of us who vow to do stuff if the Lord hears our prayers, then don’t keep our promise. But as we sit today and ponder Hannah’s powerful prayer, let’s also remember these wise words of Cousin Sol from Ecclesiastes. ‘When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer (delay) not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed. Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than thou shouldest vow and not pay.’ (Eccl. 5:4-5)
And we should not keep our promises only to God, but to all mankind, which will surely increase the faith, trust and LOVE in our faithless and distrustful world! Much LOVE!
…sincerely walking with God…is the best antidote…for the problems of this earthly life…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
06 Jul 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: cast their crowns before the throne, eternal death, eternal life, faith, find our true selves, god, God is worthy because of What he is, God is worthy because of Who He is, great is the Lord and greatly to be praised, He is worthy to be praised, he that is slow to anger is better than the mighty, his greatness is unsearchable, his tender mercies are over all his works, I will extol thee, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Jesus is valuable, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, LOVE, mercy, of great mercy, one generation shall praise thy works to another, Praise the Lord, psalms, sincerity and truth, slow my thoughts, the glorious splendour of thy majesty, the Lord is good to all, The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, the most valuable thing life has to offer, the straight and narrow path that leads to heaven, the wide and destructive path that leads to hell, thou art worthy to receive honour and glory, thou hast created all things, tickles his fancy, warms the cockles of God's heart, when we give glory to the living God, wisdom, worship, worship worthless idols, your unceasing nearness
Psalm 145:3. Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable.
Ah friends, it’s a beautiful lazy-day Saturday in my neighborhood! And yuh better believe I made the most of it…not so much because I was lazily inclined, (smile) but because the ole body was crying out for more rest, since, even by my standards, I went to bed at a fairly late hour this morning. And it was certainly worth it, for I’m now feeling much refreshed in soul, body and mind, ready to face whatever the day and the cray, ungodly world has to offer. So let’s get the ball rolling by offering up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, with all sincerity and truth.
As one voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
Oh my people, of all of our Scrip-Bit Prayers, I think that’s certainly my favourite, because we’re not asking God for anything material, which can sometimes feel sort of selfish, but asking for His personal presence deeper and richer in our lives. And we all know He never fails to answer that kind of prayer because it just tickles His fancy and warms the cockles of His heart when we ask for Him to be a major figure in our broken earthly existence.
So, by now, if our requests were sincere, we should all be feeling lighter and more refreshed in mind, body and soul as the Lord enlivens us with His awesome presence. And all God’s children said: ‘Praise the Lord! For He is indeed worthy to be praised!’ Now that’s an interesting angle, God’s worthiness to be praised, for us to pursue this morning…or almost early afternoon (smile)
And Bruh David’s words In Psalm 145 – God’s Unsearchable Greatness – says a lot about it. He proclaims his awesome wonder and gratitude thus: ‘I will extol (praise) thee, My God, O king; and I will bless thy name for ever and ever. Every day will I bless thee; and I will praise thy name for ever and ever. Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable. One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts. I will speak of the glorious honour (splendour) of thy majesty, and of thy wondrous works.
And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible (awesome) acts: and I will declare thy greatness. They shall abundantly (eagerly) utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall sing of thy righteousness. The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy. The Lord is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.’ (Ps. 145:1-9)
Oh my fellow believers, Bruh David surely sings God’s praises, and a lot of it is from personal experience with His heavenly Father. But some of us still cannot fathom God’s greatness and continue asking, why is worthy of our praise? This commentary breaks it down for us quite handily. ‘He is worthy because of WHO He is: (1) He is God; (2) He is our Maker; (3) He is our Shepherd. He is worthy because of WHAT He is: (1) He is good; (2) He is merciful; (3) He is truthful.’ And as Bruh David says in the psalm: ‘The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.’ (Ps. 145:8)
Yes friends, just for those last four attributes alone our God deserves very much praise and thanksgiving, for if He wasn’t those things, we would not be alive to tell the tale, as our sinful souls don’t truly deserve anything that He’s done, is doing or will do for us. It all stems from Hs great LOVE and compassion for His most marvellous and magnificent creation – mankind! And we’d better believe it, appreciate it, and give Him the thanks, praise and glory He so richly deserves!
And some also ask, why is Jesus worthy to be praised? This other commentary gives us a simple but oh so true answer. ‘Jesus is valuable. We worship Jesus because we have discovered Him to be the most valuable thing that life has to offer. He ransomed us from sin. He restored us to the Father. He satisfies every longing of our hearts.’ Oh my people, do we need more reason than that to worship and praise the holy name of our Lord and Saviour?
Absolutely not! For without Him we’d right now be trodding the wide and destructive path that leads directly to hellfire and damnation. But with His timely intervention, we’ve been redeemed, reconciled, justified, sanctified, and so many other things, that now we’re heaven bound on the straight and narrow path that leads there, and which not many people find and/or follow. For my money that’s more than enough for me to LOVE, praise and worship Jesus Christ!
However, throughout the Bible there are numerous passages and reasons for worshipping God and giving Him glory. Let’s check out a couple more. This one from 1 Chronicles which says in no uncertain terms: ‘For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised: he also is to be feared (held in reverential awe) above all gods. For all the gods of the people are idols (worthless things): but the Lord made the heavens.’ (1 Chr. 16:25-26)
But you know what friends, we should also be physically scared of the Lord and the awesome power He has over us, His creation. As Jesus so wisely says: ‘And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.’ (Matt. 10:28) And that my friends is God Almighty! So we’d better wise up and look to ourselves, if we truly desire to see eternal life in heaven and not eternal death in hell.
Then there’s this wonderful picture of praise in heaven found in the Book of Revelation. It says: ‘The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat upon the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created (by your will they exist).’ (Rev. 4:10-11)
What more is there to say eh my fellow believers? Just these wise and wonderful words of this commentary: ‘So, why give God our praise and worship? Because we only find our true selves when we give glory to the living and true God—the one who has revealed the fullness of his glory in his Son, Jesus Christ (Revelation 5:13). Now, please take a moment on this lazy-day Saturday and read that verse for yourselves and wisely acknowledge that all our praise and worship belongs to NO ONE ELSE but Almighty God! Much LOVE!
…why worship worthless idols…when there’s a worthwhile God
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
11 May 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a deceptive vision, an addiction, Bible, christianity, deepen my breath, enslaved to the possession of wealth, god, God causes us to get wealth, hate the one and love the other, healthy spiritual sight, hold to the one and despise the other, how great is that darkness, I may know you all the more, if thine eye be evil (umhealthy), if thine eye be single, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, LOVE, mistaken identity, money, Mother's Day, no man serve two masters, personality without blemish, Praise the Lord, quiet my soul, relax my muscles, Sermon on the Mount, sickness, slow my thoguhts, spiritual double vision, stop running down money, storing up treasures, thank you for this tenderness, the darkening of the mind, the evil eye, the eye, the light of the body, the light of the body is the eye, the LOVE of money, the root of all kinds of evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness, thy whole body shall be full of light, where your treasure is there will be your heart also, who owns the cattle on a thousand hills, wisdom, Ye cannot serve God and mammon, your peace and love are present, your unceasing nearness
Matthew 6:24b. Ye cannot serve God and mammon (material wealth).
Ah friends, it’s a beautiful lazy-day Saturday… a tad windy, but definitely not as bad as it was a couple of days ago. And the store owners have big smiles on their faces as they are doing a brisk business on the eve of the Mother’s Day Celebration tomorrow. Ah Lord eh! It’s amazing how the economic forces can always find a way to strip us of the few pennies we have on some trumped up occasion. I’m not saying that Mother’s Day is not a worthwhile celebration, but the economic powers spread the goo so thickly in their advertisements that we can’t help but fall for it.
And I’m sure it’s disturbing a lot of lazy-day Saturdays, (smile) but not to mind, Mother is worth every penny and every thing we do for her. So let’s smile up and look up, as we offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday prayer with all sincerity and truth. As one voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
And if you were sincere, then the presence and peace of God is flowing into you right now, for those kinds of prayers, prayers desiring His presence and LOVE, He answers right away. And all God’s people said a loud and grateful: ‘Praise the Lord!’ Now, yesterday, when we looked at Jesus’ teaching in the Sermon on the Mount re treasures and the folly of storing up earthly treasures as against heavenly ones, we left out a couple of interesting verses that Jesus outlined. And we did it on purpose because it would have made the Bit even longer than it already was.
So today, let’s take a look at those verses and see what more Jesus had to say on the subject of storing up treasures. After He declared: (yesss!!!) ‘For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.’ (Matt. 6:21) He continued: ‘The light (lamp) of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single (healthy), thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil (unhealthy), thy whole body shall be full of darkness; If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!’ (Matt. 6:22-23)
Now those certainly are interesting scriptures my brethren. But what do they mean? Well, let’s listen as the scholars explain. ‘6:22-23: The light of the body is associated with the eye. The concept here is based on the ancient idea that the eyes were the windows through which light entered the body. If the eyes were in good condition the body could receive such light. Jesus, using this language metaphorically, affirms that if a man’s spiritual sight is healthy and his affections directed towards heavenly treasure, his whole personality will be without blemish.
The phrase if …thine eye be single indicates devotion to one purpose. The “single eye” refers to a single, fixed vision or goal. The phrase if thine eye be evil refers to either disease or deception of vision. The “evil eye” is not something mysterious or devilish, but rather a deceptive vision that causes the viewer to mistake the identity of an object. The mistake in this context is the darkening of the mind and thus how great is that darkness!’
And yes, the explanation can be almost as challenging as the scripture itself to understand, but if we take our time with it, and go over it several times, I’m sure we’ll eventually get the gist of the whole passage. So why did Jesus introduce those ideas at that point eh? So that He could assert the following wisdom: ‘No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and LOVE the other; or else he will hold to (be loyal to) the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon (material wealth).’ (Matt. 6:24)
Now that’s oh so true friends! We can only serve ONE Master at a time. And that ONE ought to be God Almighty and not the material wealth of this evil world. And the scholars tell us this about that verse. ‘6:24. This kind of spiritual double vision cause one to believe he can serve two masters. Total loyalty to God cannot be divided between Him and loyalty to one’s material possessions. A master (Gr. kurios) is a lord or an owner. That God claims total lordship over His own is obvious in this passage. Therefore Jesus rightly proclaimed, Ye cannot serve God and mammon. The term ‘mammon’ is derived from the Aramaic term for possessions or wealth. Jesus is not condemning money or possessions in and of themselves, but the improper attitude of enslavement toward wealth.’
And believe me people, too many of us, even God’s people, are still too enslaved to the possession of worldly wealth. So much so, that we run it down as though there was no tomorrow. We don’t eat or sleep properly. Our relationships are in bad shape and our attitude on the whole is totally disagreeable, because we are so fixated on gaining material wealth. It becomes an addiction, a sickness that’s difficult to overcome. It has you vying with others for supremacy in wealth and power, causes envy, jealousy and strife, and last but not least, physical sickness. And the sad part is that when you get sick, whether it’s emotionally or physically sick, the material wealth is useless in helping you to get better. Just look at the many wealthy people who die from simple diseases. Their wealth could not keep them alive.
And yes friends, it’s good to have wealth, but not if you have to run it down. Remember who owns the cattle on a thousand hills, and who causes us to get wealth in the first place…our heavenly Father. So if we need material wealth He is the One we ought to turn to, for everything in the universe belongs to Him, and if He gives us wealth, like he gave to Cousin Sol, then we won’t have to worry about losing it, since He won’t give it to us until He knows that we can be proper stewards of His belongings. So please, let’s stop running down money and material possessions nuh, for it only damages our lives, and when we die, we can’t even take any of it with us. it’s just left behind to cause further strife between our friends and relatives! Much LOVE!
…the LOVE of money…is the root of all kinds of evil… (1 Tim. 6:10)
16 Oct 2023
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: according as he commanded them, divine help, enjoy the abundant life, face storms with a good attitude, faith, found grace in your eyes, his sons did unto him, hold on to God, humble ourselves, I will come again, it was a very great company, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, keep God first place in our lives, LOVE, mass confusion in our world, Monday Morniing Battle Hymn, negative situaions, obedience, only a prayer away, Praise the Lord, pray, sinned and disobeyed your Word, the days o his mourning, the God who heals, the land of Canaan, the mourning of Egypt, the threshing floor of Atad, weekend slumber, wise guidance
Genesis 50:12. And his (Jacob’s) sons did unto him according as he commanded them.
And as surely as the sunshine follows the rain, and the moon the sun, so does Monday follow Sunday. It’s a day that many of us don’t like because it wakes us from our weekend slumber, but it’s all a part of this thing we call life, and instead of complaining about it, we had better grab it by the tail and swing with it, if we want to enjoy the abundant life that Christ died for us to have. And all God’s people said, ‘Praise the Lord!’
Yes, for our own sakes, we had better hold on to God. Do like Bruh Joseph did despite his many trials and much tribulation, most of which were unfair and unjust. And as the Lord promised, when the time was right, He came through for him. The Lord will do the same for each one of us who faces our storms with a good attitude and keep Him first place in our lives.
Now, the last time we saw Bruh Joseph his father Jacob had died after blessing his sons and making them promise to bury him in the land of Canaan with his fathers, Isaac and Abraham. Bruh Joseph had therefore had Jacob’s body embalmed and the Egyptians mourned for the patriarch for sixty days.
The Bible then tells us: ‘And when the days of his mourning were past, Joseph spake unto the house of Pharaoh, saying, If now I have found grace (favour) in your eyes, speak, I pray you, in the ears of Pharaoh, saying, My father made me swear, saying, Lo, I die: in my grave which I have digged for me in the land of Canaan, there shalt thou bury me. Now, therefore let me go up, I pray thee, and bury my father, and I will come again. And Pharaoh said, Go up, and bury thy father, according as he made thee swear.’ (Gen. 50:4-6)
It’s obvious that Pharaoh was very proud of and understanding where Bruh Joseph was concerned. And he had just cause because Bruh Joseph had saved Egypt from certain ruin during the years of the severe famine, and even made Pharaoh richer than he had previously been.
Thus, the Bible relates: ‘And Joseph went up to bury his father: and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his house, and all the elders of the land of Egypt. And all the house of Joseph and his brethren, and his father’s house: only their little ones, and their flocks, and their herds, they left in the land of Goshen. And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen: and it was a very great company.’ (Gen. 50:7-9)
Wow! Jacob certainly had a big, royal-like send off. But he deserved it for he was indeed royalty; the patriarch of Israel. And it’s interesting how the Egyptians treated the Hebrews in the early days, as opposed to four hundred years later, under the Pharaoh who supposedly didn’t know of Bruh Joseph and the history of the Hebrew children in Egypt.
And the Good Library continues: ‘And they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond Jordan, and they mourned with a great and very sore (solemn) lamentation: and he made (observed) a mourning for his father seven days. And when the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning in the floor of Atad, they said, This is a grievous mourning to the Egyptians: wherefore the name of it was called Abel-mizraim (Mourning of Egypt), which is beyond Jordan.’ (Gen. 50: 10-11)
Imagine that nuh, the great sorrow expressed by the Egyptians over a Hebrew man. That was when the Hebrews were a mere handful of people, before they grew into such a substantial amount of people, that they threatened the Egyptian’s security, and had to be enslaved to keep them quiet.
‘And his (Jacob’s) sons did unto him according as he commanded them. For his sons carried him into the land of Canaan, and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, which Abraham bought with the field for a possession of a buryingplace of Ephron the Hittite, before Mamre. And Joseph returned into Egypt, he, and his brethren, and all that went up with him to bury his father, after he had buried his father.’ (Gen. 50:12-14)
Oh mih people, can you imagine the spectacle that funeral must have been? With Egyptians and Hebrews, chariots and horses, plus food carts and whatever moving over the land from Egypt to Canaan. And on the way to Canaan land, they stopped for seven days and partied on the threshing floor of Atad. It was such an immense spectacle that the Canaanites changed the name of the place to Abel-mizraim (the Mourning of Egypt).
At that moment in time, all of the great Hebrew patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, had finally been put to rest in the land that their God had promised to their descendants. And the Hebrew people went on growing and prospering in the land of Goshen in Egypt, through the generous auspices of their great God. Likewise, we can also prosper if we sincerely turn to Him for help… and do we ever need a monumental amount of help in our world right now.
So, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, let’s go to the throne of grace in confident humility and ask for divine help to handle our many earthly problems. As one voice: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
It’s obvious then, that our next step is to change our evil ways…if we truly desire to receive divine help. Much LOVE!
…with sincere obedience…divine help is only a prayer away…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
06 Oct 2023
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a shrewd operator, be obedient ot God and His Word, be servants unto Pharaoh, birth of the Jewish nation, buy us and our lands for bread, compassion, divine help, earthly problems, famine, Friday chant, gave them bread in exchange for livestock, give the fifth part unto Pharaoh, His unfailing goodness grace and mercy, Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh's house, labour migration, let us find grace in the sight of my lord, LOVE, no bread in all the land, Praise the Lord, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, thou hast saved our lives, throne of grace, tthe feudal system, unexpected storms, wake up and smell the coffee, wherefore shall we die, wise guidance
Genesis 27:45. Thou hast saved our lives: let us find grace (favour) in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh’s servants.
And the rains came… Yes friends, at long last some rain fell in my area last night. And the beauty of it all is that this Friday morning has opened, clean, fresh, bright and sunshiny! And the temperature isn’t too bad either, in the high teens. So, when we say, ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ we have more to be thankful for than just the end of the workweek and the start of the weekend. Give our good God some praise and thanks nuh, for His excellent kindness to us, this first Friday in October 2023. And all God’s people said a loud and grateful, ‘Praise the Lord for His unfailing goodness, grace and mercy to the children of men!’
Now, let’s see what’s happening with Bruh Joseph and his family in the land of Egypt. In our last episode we saw where Jacob and his family came to Egypt during the famine, met Pharoah and got his permission to settle in the fertile land of Goshen, where Bruh Joseph provided generously for them. Meanwhile, the Bible informs us: ‘And there was no bread in all the land; for the famine was very sore (severe), so that the land of Egypt and all the land of Canaan fainted (languished) by reason of the famine. And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, for the corn (grain) which they bought: and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh’s house.’ (Gen. 47:13-14)
Bruh Joseph was certainly a shrewd operator, a true son of Jacob’s loins. (smile) But that was not the half of it. For the Bible continues: ‘And when the money failed in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came unto Joseph, and said, Give us bread: for why should we die in thy presence? For the money faileth. And Joseph said, Give your cattle (livestock); and I will give you (bread) for your cattle, if money fail. And they brought their cattle (livestock) unto Joseph: and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for horses, and for the flocks, and for the cattle of the herds, and for the asses (donkeys): and he fed (supplied) them with bread (in exchange) for all their cattle for that year.’ (Gen. 47:15-17)
Now, you’d think that would have solved the situation, but no, it only intensified the drama, because as the Good Library tells us: ‘When that year was ended, they came unto him (Joseph) the second year, and said unto him, We will not hide it from my lord, how that our money is spent; my lord hath also our herds of cattle (livestock); there is not ought (nothing) left in the sight of my lord, but our bodies and our lands. Wherefore shall we die before thine eyes, both we and our lands? buy us and our lands for bread, and we and our land will be servants unto Pharaoh: and give us seed, that we may live, and not die, that the land be not desolate.
And Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharoah; for the Egyptians sold every man his field, because the famine prevailed (was severe) over them: so the land became Pharaoh’s. And as for the people, he (Joseph) removed (moved) them to the cities from one end of the borders of Egypt even to the other end thereof.’ (Gen. 47: 18-21)
Bubba! Bruh Joseph was practicing a form of labour migration, moving people around for employment purposes, long before it before it became popular (smile). However, there was one exception to Bruh Joseph’s total ‘Pharaohanization’ of the land. ‘Only the land of the priests bought he not; for the priests had a portion assigned (rations allotted) them of Pharaoh, and did eat their portion (rations) which Pharaoh gave them: wherefore they sold not their lands.’ (Gen. 47:23) So, in all of Egypt, only the lands of the priests did not officially belong to Pharaoh.
Now, I wonder what Pharoah was saying to all the accumulation of wealth and property and power that Bruh Joseph was piling up in his name? And I guess, since he was a human being with a selfish and greedy sin nature, that must have thrilled him. But neither Pharoah nor us, had heard or seen the last of Bruh Joseph’s accumulative and power building moves.
Listen, as the Bible relates it: ‘Then Joseph said unto the people, Behold, I have bought you this day and your land for Pharaoh: lo, here is seed for you, and ye shall sow the land. And it shall come to pass in the increase, that ye shall give the fifth part unto Pharaoh, and four parts shall be your own, for seed of the field, and for your food, and for them of your households, and for food for your little ones. And they said, Thou hast saved our lives: let us find grace (favour) in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh’s servants. And Joseph made it a law over the land of Egypt unto this day, that Pharaoh should have the fifth part; except the land of the priests only, which became not Pharaoh’s.’ (Gen. 47:23-26)
Mama oh Mama! Bruh Joseph might just have begun the feudal system in Egypt, a system whereby, in a simplified form, the lower classes worked the land and other industry for the upper classes in return for food and protection. One commentary says: ‘It can be broadly defined as a system for structuring society around relationships derived from the holding of land, known as a fiefdom or fief, in exchange for service or labour.’ And it’s a system that found great purchase during the medieval and middle ages in Europe.
Ah friends, did Bruh Joseph turn out to be a saviour or a monster? Was that the plan he had in mind all along, or did it just happen as the circumstances were played out. Who knows? But it’s for sure that the teenaged Hebrew lad sold into slavery by his jealous and evil brothers, with the help of our great God, did have a major impact on the land of Egypt and the lives of the Egyptians, as well as laying the foundations for the birth of the Jewish nation, the seed of Abraham, promised to him so long before by his faithful and awesome God.
And just like the Lord helped Abraham and his descendants back then, He still helps us when we go to Him in sincere and humble obeisance. So, let’s do that right now nuh, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant, seeking heavenly help for our earthly problems. Altogether now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help.
Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times. We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you.
Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
And if we hope to see divine changes, then we need to do as we said…wake up and smell the coffee! Much LOVE!
…the ONLY way to get divine help…is by being obedient to God and His Word…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
27 Sep 2023
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a word fitly spoken, endure to the end, for His goodness to the children of men, forgiveness of sins, get you up in peace unto your father, glad to be alive, halfway home, hands on the plough, his goodness endureth for ever, his goodness to the children of men, in pictures of silver, keepeth his soul from trouble, let it be according unto your words, life is filled with intrigue and deceit, like apples of gold, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, not turning back, practices divination, Praise the Lord, protocol, set on fire by Satan, set on fire of hell, sets on fire, shirtsleeve temperatures, thank God, the breath of life is still flowing through me, the tongue is a fire, the tongue is a little member, the tongue is a system of iniquity, the whole course of life, they fell before him on the ground, to a glorious future with Jesus, Wednesday Wail, wherefore have ye rewarded evil for good, whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue, ye shall be blameless
Genesis 44:12b. …and the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack.
Oh my people, beautiful days are still here! Glory Hallelujah! Yes friends it’s another sunshiny autumn day with shirtsleeve temperatures. And how can we not give thanks to our wonderful God for that eh? He’s awesome! Giving us life, health and beautiful days, along with the forgiveness of sins earned by the blood of the Lamb that was slaughtered on Calvary’s cross for us ungrateful children of men! Wow! And all God’s children shouted in gratitude: ‘Praise the Lord for His goodness to the children of men. His goodness endureth forever!’ And so it does my fellow saints, each and every day of our lives.
And having shown some gratitude for God’s goodness, let’s now turn to the amazing story of Bruh Joseph. Yesterday we saw him lunch with his brothers and the Egyptians of his household, though they were all at separate tables. Bruh Joseph by himself, the brothers by themselves and the Egyptians by themselves. What a crazy way to dine together! But apparently protocol, or man’s foolish and selfish rules, called for it. And on the outside, everything looked good. But Bruh Joseph was not finished testing his brothers.
When they departed the next morning, sacks filled with grain, and their money back in them, they had no clue what was about to happen. Bruh Joseph had told his steward to put his silver cup in Benjamin’s sack, and before they got very far, he sent the steward after them. ‘And he (the steward) overtook them, and he spake unto them these same words, (the words Bruh Joseph had told him to speak). ‘Wherefore have ye rewarded (repaid) evil for good? Is not this it in which my lord drinketh, and whereby indeed he divineth (practices divination)? ye have done evil in so doing.’ (Gen. 44:4b-5).
‘And they said unto him, wherefore saith my lord these words? God forbid that thy servants (far be it from us that we) should do according to this thing: Behold, the money, which we found in our sacks’ mouth we brought again unto thee out of the land of Canaan: how then should we steal out of thy lord’s house silver or gold? With whomsoever of thy servants it be found, both let him die, and we also will be my lord’s bondmen (slaves). And he (the steward) said, Now let it be according unto your words: he with whom it is found shall be my servant (slave); and ye shall be blameless.’ (Gen. 44:6-10)
Yes friends, life can be filled with lots of intrigue and deceit, especially in these very selfish, ungodly and evil days. That’s why we need to be very careful with whom we speak or associate, and also guard what we say. For in these times of social media, words are being poured out by the millions without any thought to whom they might hurt or defame. That leads us to some very wise words from James. ‘Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.’ (James 1:19)
Then later on he expounds: ‘Even so as the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter (forest) a little fire kindleth (sets on fire)! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so (likewise) is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.’ (James 3:5-6) And the scholars rewrite that last verse thus: ‘The tongue is a system (world) of iniquity that sets on fire the whole course of life, and is even set on fire by Satan.’
And it certainly is my brethren. It’s one of the smallest members of our body, but possibly the most powerful for it causes wars and stops wars, conveys LOVE, and stops LOVE! You name it, and our tongue is involved somewhere or other. And that’s why Cousin Sol says in Proverbs: ‘Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from trouble.’ (Prov. 21:23) Truer words were never spoken my people! And though I didn’t intend to deviate to the problems of the tongue, it’s always a good thing for us to hear scriptures on it, because it plays such a large part in our lives.
But getting back to Bruh Joseph’s story. The steward agrees that anyone in whose sack his master’s silver cup is found, will be their slave, but the others will be blameless. ‘Then they speedily took down every man his sack to the ground, and opened every man his sack. And he (the steward) searched, and began at the eldest, and left at (finished with) the youngest: and the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack. Then they rent (tore) their clothes, and laded (loaded) ever man his ass (donkey), and returned to the city.’ (Gen. 44:11-13)
Can you imagine the kerfuffle finding Bruh Joseph’s silver cup in Benjamin’s bag. The Bible tells us: ‘And Judah and his brethren came to Joseph’s house: for he was yet there: and they fell before him on the ground. And Joseph said unto them, What deed is this that ye have done? wot (know) ye not that such a man as I can certainly divine (practice divination)?
And Judah said, What shall we say unto my lord? what shall we speak? or how shall we clear ourselves? God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants: behold, we are my lord’s servants, both we, and he also with whom the cup is found. And he (Bruh Joseph) said, God forbid (far be it from me) that I should do so: but the man in whose hand the cup is found, he shall be my servant; and as for you, get you up in peace unto your father.’ (Gen. 44:14-17)
Oh my people, the ball was certainly in Bruh Joseph’s court, and he was surely playing hard ball, giving no inch!! But listen to these explanations from the scholars. They say, ‘There was a sacred character attributed to the cup, for he called it a divining cup (cf. vs. 5,15). This theft may have been punishable by death (cf. 31-32). Divining was fundamentally alien to Israel; God revealed His will explicitly (cf. Num. 23:23) Joseph would certainly not have used these means, but he was playing a role and testing his brothers. He wanted to see if they would seize the opportunity to get rid of Benjamin (like they had gotten rid of him). Would they stand with him? Had their hearts been changed?’
Now that was the big question. And like all good drama stories, we’ll leave you right there in suspense. (smile) But if God so desires, tomorrow we’ll find out the answer to the big question. Right now though, let’s declare (chuhhh!!!) our Wednesday Wail, letting the whole world know of our marvellous position in Christ Jesus.
Altogether: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’
And it’s been further promised that if we endure with Jesus right down to the very end, then that future will be even more glorious than we can ever ask or imagine! Wow! So please, let’s plan on enduring to the very end with Christ nuh! Much LOVE!
…a word fitly spoken (at the right time)…is like apples of gold…in pictures (settings) of silver… (Prov. 25:11)
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
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