The Dire Importance of Believers longing for God’s Presence in their Lives!

31 Aug 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Psalm 42:1.        As the hart panteth after (the deer longs for) the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.

Well, it’s the last day of August 2024! Just imagine that nuh; the summer holidays done and over with…but we still have the whole long Labour Day weekend to cavort about and get in some last minute flings. (smile) But remember, a modicum of circumspection is always the best advice in those rushed circumstances. And this lazy-day Saturday seems to be tailor-made for laziness. (smile) It’s damp and cloudy, after a big thunderstorm last night, and there might even be some more rain later in the day. But right now the sun is making a valiant effort to overcome the dark clouds that insist on holding it up. 

In the meanwhile, while we enjoy a lazy Saturday morning, there’s nothing better than offering up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer. So as one sincere 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!’ 

Now that’s the best kind of prayer we can ever pray; asking for a greater presence of the Lord in our lives and desiring to know Him better than we already do. Because there’s nothing the Lord appreciates more than His people wanting to have a closer association with, and knowledge of Him. That kind of prayer warms the cockles of His heart and He immediately answers it. That’s why we’re now feeling the increased warmth, the LOVE, the glowing presence of our God moving in our souls and spirits.  

And that mind frame just reminded me of these yearning words of the Sons of Korah from Psalm 42. ‘As the hart panteth after (the deer longs for) the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?’ (Ps. 42:1-2) Yes friends, that’s the kind of hunger and thirst we ought to have for our God, the One True Living God, Jehovah! For all that we are, everything we have, comes from, is derived from Him. 

Obviously Bruh David was of the same mind, for although He was running from Saul in the wilderness of Judah, he nonetheless longed for the Lord; for spiritual renewal with thanksgiving and trust. Listen to how he puts in in Psalm 63. ‘O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is; To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen (looked for) thee in the sanctuary. Because thy LOVING-kindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee. Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.’ (Ps. 63:1-4) 

Now that’s how we ought to feel about our great and LOVING God, my people! And some might say that Bruh David was laying it on somewhat thick because He was out in the wilderness suffering, but we all know that from a youth, out in the fields as a shepherd, he was always entranced by and calling out to God. As these other verses testify. ‘My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow (the best) and fatness (abundance); and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips: When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches. Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice. My soul followeth hard after (close behind) thee: thy right hand upholdeth me.’ (Ps. 63.5-8) 

Yuh see what happens when we keep God first place in our hearts and souls. He helps us, and when further tough times come, we can remember that earlier help and not be afraid, but rejoice that the Lord will help us again. And that’s why Bruh David enjoyed so much of God’s goodness in his life. He never strayed far from Him, always kept Him at the forefront of his mind. And that’s how we supposed believers in Christ Jesus ought to behave. As Jesus so wisely advised: ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:33) 

And we see that in Bruh David’s life. He kept God first place and the Lord made him the greatest king that Israel ever had. His life was not easy, but the rewards were certainly worth it. And anyway, after he became king, most of his trouble came from his own doing. The Lord could have certainly demoted him to a lowly servant for his adultery with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband Uriah, but He knew that Bruh David’s heart was right, that’s why He could call him a friend, and a man after His own heart. (1 Sam. 13:14) 

And that basically means Bruh David valued the things of God, and generally walked with a heart filled with faith, LOVE and repentance. Now that’s what we ought also to be doing in these very troubled and critical times, because that’s why God has us here at this particular time. We were made for a time such as this; to show forth God’s praise and glory, His goodness and mercy, and challenge others to come to Him in faith and receive salvation and eternal life! We’re not here just to live the good, comfortable, entitled life, as so many of us insist on doing. 

No, we need to be sacrificing some for Jesus and those who don’t know Him, and will thus lose out on His selfless sacrifice on their behalf. That’s what Jesus expects of those who call themselves, Christians, or His followers. But unfortunately we’re not doing enough good Christian witness, otherwise the world would not be in as sorry a state as it currently is. Hate, and not LOVE, is ruling the roost. 

We’re not being the true salt of the earth and the light of the world as Jesus desires. Sadly, our salt has lost its flavour, and our light has been dimmed by the proliferating darkness of this ungodly world. That means we’re not seeking God and His presence in our lives as much as we ought to. But please, let’s try and turn that around with a new yearning for our Creator, so that we can do a better job, and thus leave our children’s children a better world. Much LOVE!

…the believer’s thirst for God…is not as dire as it ought to be…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Time for Believers to think seriously of Christ’s Return and LIVE Accordingly!

10 Aug 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

2 Peter 3:3.       Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers (mockers), walking after (according to) their own lusts,

And it’s a somewhat cool and windy but sunshiny lazy-day Saturday in my neck of the woods. And I did try to stay abed a little longer, to enjoy the laziness of the day, but my old bones would have none of it. They argued that they’d had enough lying down, were getting stiff, and therefore needed to get up and move around. And, sadly, one cannot contend with those arguments, especially when there’s pain to back them up. (smile) So here we are, trying to find other ways to enjoy the laziness. And there’s’ no better way to do that than to look to heaven and offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer. 

So, as one sincere and heartfelt 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!’ 

Now, having offered up that prayer, let’s take a few moments to enjoy the overwhelming calm and wonderful presence of God that’s beginning to flow through our souls, spirits, bodies and minds, because as we say every week,  sincerely seeking more of God is the kind of prayer He cannot refuse, and therefore He answers it right away. And do we ever desperately need the calm and peace of God’s presence in these trying times, when it seems that Bruh Paul’s words to Timothy are ringing true. We’re referring to his words pertaining to perilous times. 

‘This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous (money lovers), boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy. Without natural affection, trucebreakers (irreconcilable), false accusers (slanderers), incontinent (without self-control), fierce (brutal), despisers of those that are good. Traitors, heady (reckless) high-minded (haughty), lovers of pleasures more than (rather) lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.’ (2 Tim. 3:1-5) 

Oh my people, a greater warning we will never have, because when we look around our strife-filled, chaotic world we can see that it’s definitely over populated by the types of people Bruh Paul spoke about almost two thousand years ago! It’s certainly sad and trying times we’re living in when such a large proportion of the world’s population have chosen to engage in the works of Satan, rather than those of Jehovah God. If you look at each category that Bruh Paul talks about you’ll certainly see them flourishing in our current world. 

Especially the  money lovers or the greedy, who are driving the world to ruin, trying to scrape up everything for themselves, when they already have more than they can ever use. That’s why one percent of the world owns ninety something percent of it, while the remaining ninety nine percent own less than ten percent. And it’s that sad inequity that’s driving a lot of the strife and dissension on the earth. 

It’s surprising to note, that at this supposedly advanced stage of our civilization, that a great percentage of our people are still fighting for some sort of equality, whether it be for race, colour, or creed, for the rights of women and children, for the right to be free, both spiritually and physically, because physical slavery is still being practiced in many parts of the earth. 

And what does it all mean? The scholars explain it thus: ‘The last days began with the birth of Christ and will culminate in Christ’s return to earth to set up His kingdom. The prediction of perilous times indicates that apostasy (a turning away from God) will characterize the final days of the church age.’ And for whatever reason(s), we’re certainly seeing people turn away from God in droves, much more than are coming to Him. Meanwhile, ‘A form of godliness simply means mere religion without power or spiritual life.’ And it’s the spiritual power in our lives that really guides us through this earthly life. So if you don’t have it, then crapaud smoke yuh pipe. 

Now, it’s not only Bruh Paul that warned the early Christian church about the ungodliness of the last days of the church age, both Peter and Jude also did it. Listen to Peter’s warning. ‘This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance: That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us apostles of the Lord and Saviour: Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers (mockers), walking after (according to) their own lusts, 

And saying, where is the promise of his coming? For since the Fathers fell asleep (died), all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. For this they willingly are ignorant of (forget), that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water. Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: But the heavens and the earth which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against (until) the day of judgement and perdition (destruction) of ungodly men.’ (2 Pet. 3:1-7) 

Yes friends, it’s the same type of warning that in the last days of the church age, men will turn away from God, mocking and blaspheming His holy name, using all kinds of trumped up, untrue and ungodly arguments, as the scholars tell us, ‘to ridicule the promise of Christ’s second coming. Peter further states that arguments based on supposedly unchanging processes since creation fail to recall the severity of the flood of water upon the earth. Just as God once destroyed the world by water, so it is now reserved unto fire until the day of judgement. See the descriptions of fiery judgements in Revelation 17-19)’ 

Yuh see my fellow believers, the devil is working in all sorts of underhanded and deceitful ways to try to turn us away from God. No depths of deceit are too low for him to turn to. And Jude, apparently Jesus’ brother, who like several other brothers, only came to faith after He died, puts his warning thus: 

‘But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of (by) the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts. These be they who separate themselves (cause divisions), sensual (worldly), having not the Spirit. But ye beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, Keep yourselves in the LOVE of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.’ (Jude 17-21) 

Yes my fellow saints, the Word of the Lord is indeed true, as we can see from the prophecies that are now being fulfilled in these last days. Therefore let’s be wise and take godly action to protect ourselves from the evil one, while also building up our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, so we shall be perfectly entrenched in His camp when He returns. Much LOVE!

…a word to the wise is sufficient…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Only in God’s Presence can One enjoy the fullness of Life!

27 Jul 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Proverbs 8:17.        I LOVE them that LOVE me; and those that seek me early (diligently) shall find me.

Oh friends, can you believe that this is already the last weekend in July? Didn’t we just celebrate Canada Day on the first day of the month? How can we be seeing the end so soon eh? Next week we’ll be talking about August… and you know what that means – the end of summer! Brother! The days are running away from us, and in a li’l while, we’ll be sadly asking, where have all the flowers gone, as the cold weather steps in and the flora and fauna hibernate for another winter. 

Thankfully though, all of that’s in the future. We’ve still got time to enjoy the lazy, hazy days of summer. But we have to be quick about it. And there are lots of summer festivities still to come, like Caribana, the EX; that big Canadian Fair at the Exhibition grounds, and every weekend there’s some cultural group celebrating their old homeland with food, drink and other cultural activities. So although the summer’s moving along fast, it’s still far from over. 

But before we get out there and enjoy it all, let’s offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer with sincere, heartfelt emotions. 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 we can now feel God’s awesome presence permeating our souls and spirits even more than before, because that’s the kind of prayer the Lord just LOVES to answer. You can’t ask for anything dearer to His heart, than more of His presence in your life. And there are numerous scriptures that advise us to do just that. So let’s look at some of those scriptures about seeking God, about seeking His face. 

And this verse from Jeremiah is probably the best one to start with, where the Lord says through the prophet: ‘And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.’ (Jer. 29:13) That says it all my brethren! To find God, to come into His holy presence, we must seek Him with all of our heart. Nothing less will do. But that’s why many of us seek God and can’t find Him; we don’t do it sincerely, or with all of our hearts, but for selfish, lustful purposes. Obviously He won’t show up under such circumstances. 

Then Psalm 105 tells us in no uncertain terms: ‘Seek the Lord, and his strength: seek his face evermore.’ (Ps. 105:4) Yes friends, we’re to continually seek God’s face, seek His presence continually, every day, all day! And we see it in action when Moses prays for the Lord’s presence. 

‘And Moses said unto the Lord, See, thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people: and thou hast not let me know whom thou wilt send with me. Yet thou hast said, I know thee by name, and thou hast also found grace in my sight. Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found grace in thy sight, shew me now thy way, that I may know thee, that I may find grace in thy sight, and consider that this nation is thy people. And he (the Lord) said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest. 

And he (Moses) said unto him (the Lord), If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence. For wherein shall it be known here that I and thy people have found grace in thy sight? is it not that thou goest with us? so shall we be separated, I and thy people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth. And the Lord said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken: for thou hast found grace in my sight, and I know thee by name.’ (Ex. 33:12-17) 

Oh my fellow believers, you see how important the Lord’s presence was in the eyes of Moses. If He wasn’t with him and the Israelite people, he didn’t want to go any further, because the Lord’s presence showed that they were safe, separated  and protected from other people. It’s the same with us today. If we don’t have God’s presence in our lives, we stand a greater chance of being hurt or destroyed, physically, spiritually or emotionally. And we’ll never feel truly safe while journeying though this strife-filled and evil world. 

Meanwhile, in Psalm 16 – God Preserves His People, Bruh David writes: ‘I will bless the Lord, who hath given me counsel: my reins (heart) also instruct me in the night seasons. I have set the Lord always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest (dwell securely) in hope. For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell (the abode of the dead); neither wilt thou suffer (allow) thine Holy One to see corruption. Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand are pleasures for evermore.’ (Ps. 16:7-11) 

Yes friends, as this commentary explains: Bruh David is speaking of ‘the divine presence as the place that is most desired, that gives “fullness of joy” (verse 11). From beginning to end Psalm 16 testifies to a life that finds its ultimate rest in God’s protective presence.’ You cannot find any fault whatsoever with that statement, because it’s the gospel truth! Then Psalm 95 wisely advises: ‘Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise (shout joyfully) unto him with psalms (songs). For the Lord is a great God, and great King above all gods.’ (Ps. 95:2-3) No disputing that either! 

And no scriptures will ever be complete without a word of wisdom from Cousin Sol. On this particular subject, he conclusively states: ‘I LOVE them that LOVE me; and those that seek me early (diligently) shall find me.’ (Prov. 8:17) Now that’s simply more gospel truth! And there are no better verses to end with than these two from Jesus. The first is the greatest advice going: ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:33) If we’re wise, we’ll do exactly that. And this last one just ramps up our level of assurance in God: ‘and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt. 28:20b) 

Now there’s no better reassurance that that my fellow believers! Jesus promised to be with us right down to the very end, and since we know that He keeps all His promise, we can go home today, unafraid, totally reassured, rejoicing in His awesome holy presence. Much LOVE!

…if you’re not in God’s presence…then you’re not enjoying the fullness of life…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Living the Christian Life is Impossible without the Aid of the Holy Spirit!

20 Jul 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Galatians 5:16.        This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

So we’ve finally come to our lazy-day Saturday, but many of us cannot afford to laze around on this beautiful summer’s day, because there’s still lots of cleaning up to do and considerations to undertake to prevent this week’s tragedies from happening again. It’s a big task, both for the various levels of government as well the individual homeowners. And who knows if we’ll ever be able to stop God’s hand, but we must do something to reduce the risks. And as always, the first thing to do is pray. 

So let’s do just that nuh, as we offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, in 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 we know that our prayer has been heard and actioned, because it’s crying out for God’s presence, for a greater awareness of Him in our lives, and those kinds of prayers He answers right away, because it’s what He truly desires of us. So, although your life might be filled with serious concerns, please take some time to enjoy the peaceful and calming presence of God that’s flowing through you at this very moment. And it will not only calm your spirit, but also give you the energy or the resolve to handle your current concerns. 

That’s the awesome power of God working in us through His Holy Spirit, who dwells within us to lead, guide, comfort and teach us what the Father desires. As this commentary tells us about the significance of the Holy Spirit in the Bible? ‘The Holy Spirit unites the believer with Christ and places him in the body of Christ, the church. He also unites the believer with Christ in His death, enabling him to live victoriously over sin. The Holy Spirit controls the believer who yields to God and submits himself to God’s Word.’ 

Oh friends, there’s no better system than that in all the world! The only problem is that we have to learn to listen to the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit and respond positively to its guidance. And that’s not always easy to do, especially in these turbulent times, with all the noise and the many voices that are competing to get our attention. And the Bible tells us a lot about walking with the Holy Spirit, so let’s see if we can find a few scriptures that will help us in that matter. 

But first, listen to this other commentary that gives us an interesting insight into walking with the Holy Spirit. It says: ‘If you want to walk in the Holy Spirit, start with talking to the Holy Spirit. Throughout the day address Him, welcome Him, thank Him and worship Him. You should not feel guilty for not spending time with the Holy Spirit but you should feel thirsty. He wants relationships, not rules.’ 

And that’s the very basis of our Christian lives…we ought to feel hungry and thirsty for the Lord and His Word! Otherwise there won’t be any impetus for us to truly get involved. It’s just like when our bodies hunger for food, we run to fill them, because we cannot go on living without the nourishment and energy that food provides to our bodies. And it’s the same with our spiritual needs. We cannot function on any decent spiritual level without the impetus of hunger and thirst driving us forward to grow in spiritual maturity. 

And the first scripture we’ll look at is this one from Ezekiel, where the Lord long ago promised to cleanse His people. ‘A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statues, and ye shall keep my judgements, and do them.’ (Ezek. 36:26-27)  Yes friends, that God’s promise, which was fulfilled after Jesus came to earth and did His thing. After that, all believers were filled with the Holy Spirit. 

Then there’s this from John’s Gospel, where after Jesus tells the disciples it would be advantageous for them if He goes away, otherwise the Holy Spirit won’t come, He says: ‘I have many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them  now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself  (on his own authority); but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and will shew you things to come. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine (what is mine), and shall shew it (declare) it unto you.’ (John 16:12-14) 

So the Holy Spirit liaisons between Christ and His followers. And we all know that Jesus, before His ascension told the disciples to wait in Jerusalem until they were baptized with the power of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 1:8) And that momentous occasion occurred on the Day of Pentecost when ‘a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, filled all the house where they (the fledgling church) were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven (divided) tongues like a of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were filled with the Holy Ghost, and all began to speak with other  tongues (languages), as the Spirt gave them utterance.’ (Acts 2:2-4) 

And that day Peter preached his big sermon and some three thousand souls were saved. Thus began the growth of Christ’s new church. Then there are these solemn words of Bruh Paul to the Corinthians: ‘What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.’ (1 Cor. 6:19-20) Yes my brethren, as believers in Christ Jesus, we do not belong to ourselves, but to God, for Christ paid a price to redeem us back to God. 

And since the Holy Spirit of God dwells within each believer, then each believers body is a temple or church of God, and therefore we need to keep it holy. And to help us do that, Bruh Paul wrote these words to the Galatians. ‘This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.’ (Gal. 5:16-17) 

Oh my fellow believers, that’s much easier said than done, because the lusts or desires of our flesh are so numerous and so strong, that it takes a concerted effort to walk in the Spirit. But if we are serious about doing that, then we just have to buckle down, meditate on the Word, pray and ask the Holy Spirt for help! That’s the starting point for all of us! Much LOVE!

…one cannot live a truly Christian life…without the Holy Spirit’s guidance…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

A Lesson in Christian Maturity!

13 Jul 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Jonah 4:7.       But God prepared a worm when the next morning rose (dawned), and it smote (damaged) the gourd (shade tree) that it withered.

Oh, what a lazy-day Saturday is in the offing…warm weather, plenty sunshine, and lots of outdoor activities, or simply lazing around the homestead, whatever your preference! But in whatever you do, please remember the modicum of circumspection aspect. (smile) And can you believe it’s already the middle of July, when we just recently celebrated Canada Day. 

Brother these days and months are really hopping by quickly, waiting for no one or nothing! That means we have to get with it, no laziness and procrastination, or else life will just pass us by and we won’t even know it. And to help us avoid such a catastrophe, let’s offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer with much sincerity and heart-felt 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 as always, when such a sincere and heartfelt prayer reaches the Lord’s ears, He’s helpless to refuse, that’s why we can now feel the peace and calm of His presence floating around us, as He answers our prayer. Now, let’s keep our promise of yesterday, that if the breath of life was still flowing in us today, which it gratefully is, to continue looking at Jonah’s ministry. And yesterday, we left Jonah exceedingly glad, sitting under the shade of the gourd (shade tree of unknown identity) that the Lord had caused to grow for that purpose. 

So let’s pick up the scripture from there. It says: ‘But God prepared a worm when the next morning rose (dawned), and it smote (damaged) the gourd (shade tree) that it withered. And it came to pass when the sun did arise, that God prepared a vehement east wind, and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted (grew faint), and wished himself to die, and said, It is better for me to die than to live.’ (Jon. 4:7-8) 

Ah friends, you see how our circumstances can change drastically from one day to the next. Yet as true believers in Christ, we have to try and remain calm and bear the consequences, whether they be of our making, or Satan’s, or the Lord’s. It’s not easy to do so, and it all depends on the stage of our Christian maturity. Now Jonah, as a prophet of God, should have been able to handle all that came against him, but because of his hatred and selfishness, he preferred to die. 

And we can see it from the following conversation. The Bible relates it thus: ‘And God said to Jonah, Doest thou well to be angry (is it right to be angry) for (over) the gourd? And He (Jonah) said, I do well (it is right for me) to be angry. Then said the Lord, Thou hast had pity on the gourd (shade tree) for which thou hast not laboured, neither madest it to grow; which came up in a night, and perished in a night. And should I not spare (have pity on) Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than six score thousand (one hundred and twenty thousand) persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand; and also much cattle (livestock)?’ (Jon. 4:9-11) 

It’s interesting that Jonah felt pity for the withered plant, but not for the great number of unsaved heathen in Nineveh. And with those somewhat harsh words between the Lord and Jonah, the Book of Jonah ends. We don’t what happened after to Jonah, but according to the scholars: ‘The message of Jonah rings out loud and clear: God cares for the heathen! God will spare no extreme to get His message to them, even when the messenger is deliberately disobedient. God will marshal His animate and inanimate creation to bring correction to His messenger and fulfil His purpose for the world.’ 

And I believe we ought to pay close attention to those words. For though we might be disobedient to God, He will succeed in His purpose, and we will pay for our disobedience, one way or the other. And Jonah’s situation is a very good example of that. The Lord gave him the task of going to Nineveh and proclaiming repentance, but because of his hatred for the people of Nineveh, he refused and foolishly went in the opposite direction. 

But the Lord caught up with Him, as He does with all who are disobedient, and instead of killing him, made him first suffer torment in the stormy sea, then spend three days and nights in the belly of a large fish, where he finally regained his senses and prayed to the Lord, who in His great mercy had the fish spit him out on dry land. 

Then it’s very important to note that the Lord did not change Jonah’s assignment. No. He told him the same thing; go to Nineveh and preach repentance of sin. This time Jonah went but still in a sour and surly frame of mind, and he did the job, which seemed quite easy. But still he was not happy and wanted to die rather than see the Ninevites saved. Even when the Lord punished him for his anger, he still insisted on dying. He could have pity for the withered shade plant, but none for his fellow humans, who were spiritually ignorant, because they were of a different race and creed. 

It’s sad to see what hatred and anger can do to us, when we allow them to infiltrate our souls and spirits to such an extent, that we’d prefer to die than to see others blessed. But as Cousin Sol so wisely says: ‘there is no new thing under the sun.’ (Eccl. 1:9) For hatred and anger over colour, creed and race have existed from the earliest days and have continued right down through the ages, and is still going stronger than ever! That’s why the world is filled with so much strife and negative actions. 

And until we seriously and sincerely enact the basic commandments of God, to LOVE Him with all of our hearts, minds, bodies and souls, as well as to LOVE ourselves and our neighbours, hatred and ager over our differences will always exist and make our world a very difficult place in which to live. And it’s now up to us believers, the ones who claim to LOVE like Christ says, to make a sincere effort to turn things around. Much LOVE!

…LOVE is all there is to the law of God…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

The Necessity of Praying in God’s Will!

29 Jun 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

1 John 5:14.        And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us:

It’s a rainy lazy-day Saturday morning… just right for lying in bed, cozily wrapped up under the covers, doing something you simply cannot do during the week. (smile) Unfortunately though, I could not take advantage of such largesse because I went to bed early last night, spending more hours than normal in the bed, and just when the rain began falling, my ole back complained about too much lying down, and pained enough that I was forced to get up from the warm, comfortable bed and get a move on with my day. 

Hn! What a calamity in my old age! But them’s the breaks! And it wasn’t like I hadn’t had a decent night’s sleep. However, it would be nice to lie for as long as one desires in one’s own bed, without any complaints from one’s body. (smile) Anyway, enough with my petty troubles, let’s 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, as our prayer was sincere, and the Lord LOVES those kinds of prayers, requiring His awesome  presence in our lives, we know it’s only a matter of time before we begin feeling His presence lifting our spirits. It’s as John says in his first epistle. ‘And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired (asked) of him.’ (1 John 5:14-15) 

Yes friends, if we pray according to God’s will, then we will inevitably receive the desires for which we asked. But it must be His will for us, and also His time. So, sometimes when we pray in His will and seem to get a no answer, it’s not necessarily a definite ‘NO’ but possibly, it’s just not the right time, you’re not ready for that as yet. But in any case, we should take these words of Bruh David from Psalm 37 very seriously, where he writes about not fretting and placing our sincere trust in God. 

Please read with me: ‘Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb. Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed (feed on his faithfulness). Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. 

And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgement (justice) as the noonday. Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices (schemes) to pass. Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise (for it only causes harm). For evildoers shall be cut off (destroyed): but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.’ (Ps. 37:1-9) 

Oh my people, that’s one passage of scripture, like a few others, if you don’t read anything else, and just follow the directives contained therein, they would marvellously sustain you in your Christian walk. What does it say eh? ‘Fret not…Trust in the Lord, and do good… Delight thyself in the Lord…Commit thy way unto the Lord…Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently… Cease from anger, and forsake wrath…those that wait upon the Lord shall inherit the earth.’ 

Yes mih bredrin, that’s it in a nutshell! Everything you need to know and do in a practical sense to serve the Lord and enjoy the awesome benefits that come from truly serving Him. And no, those things are not always easy to do especially in these unsavoury and distrustful times, but if we stand strong in our faith, the Lord will help us to rest, trust, not fret, delight, commit and wait patiently for His will to come to pass. That’s what faith is all about: standing strong, even when the world is falling down around us. 

And as we saw earlier on this week, the Lord will not allow us to go through the fire, flooded rivers or any thing that can harm us without offering a helping hand. But we have to believe that sufficiently so we can do whatever is necessary to make a stand for Jesus. As Bruh Paul says in Ephesians: ‘…and having done all, to stand.’ (Eph. 6:13) Yes my fellow believers, it’s ever so important that we stand strong for Jesus in this evil and ungodly world, so that we can make a significant difference and turn things around, looking unto heaven instead of hell. 

By the way, another of those scripture passages that contain almost everything we need to know and do is Proverbs 3:5-12. It might be a good idea for us to review it soon, so that we can do what Bruh Paul advises in Colossians: ‘Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly (abundantly) in all wisdom;’ (Col. 3:16a) 

And what does it mean to let the word of God dwell in you richly? This commentary explains it thus: ‘Letting God’s Word dwell in us means we spend time reading Scripture, memorizing it, and letting it change our hearts, words, and behaviour. Doing that impacts three areas of our lives: what we teach, how we counsel, and the way we worship God.’ 

And having said all of that, it’s now time to get up and put it work, action those seemingly simple but oh so difficult and important things we need to do to walk worthily of Christ and bring honour and glory to His holy name! Much LOVE!

… if God’s Word is our greatest treasure…then deception will have no place…to rest its evil feet in our lives…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Today’s Scrip-Bit   8 June 2024 Jeremiah 29:13.

08 Jun 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Jeremiah 29:13.       And ye shall seek me, and find me when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

And it’s another lazy-day Saturday friends, but a rather windy one in my area. Well what’s new about that eh? Nothing! For this will be the third straight windy day we’ve had this week. And according to my theory, it’s blown away most of the rain we were supposed to have. (smile) So we’ve had a miniscule amount of heavenly blessings, compared to what the weather forecasters had predicted. Yesterday was also pretty chilly, as far as I was concerned. But who knows what’s going on in this crazy times of climate change and inconsistent weather patterns? Only the Good Lord…and He’s not telling. So we just have to grin and bear whatever comes against us, of course with His compassionate help! 

And to accentuate that divine aid, let’s go to Him right now, offering up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer in 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!’ 

Now, I just LOVE that prayer, because it’s one the Father cannot refuse to answer if our motives are sincere, since it’s one where we are actively seeking His person, His presence, offering up praise and thanksgiving, asking Him to come more deeply into our lives, our souls, bodies and minds. How could He ever refuse our sincere pleas to know and LOVE Him more eh? Never! Otherwise He’d be denying His own word. Remember what He says in Jeremiah. ‘For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil (calamity), to give you an expected end (a future and a hope). Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto (listen to) you. And ye shall seek me, and find me when ye shall search for me with all your heart.’ (Jer. 29:11-13) 

Yes friends, when we seek the Lord with all of our hearts, we will find Him, and He will listen to our pleas. But the operative words there are ‘with all of our hearts,’ or in true sincerity. That’s the number one requirement for activating heaven’s help – a true and sincere heart. For as Cousin Sol so wisely tells us in Proverbs: ‘Every way of a man is right in his own eyes: but the Lord pondereth (weighs) the hearts. To do justice and judgement (righteousness and justice) is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.’ (Prov. 21: 2-3) 

So though we may think that everything we do is right, remember the Lord judges us by the motives of our hearts, by what is in our hearts, by our earnest and sincere efforts; rather than by what we can accomplish through our actions. And a long time ago, the Lord pointed out this very salient fact to Samuel when he sent him to choose the new king of Israel from amongst the sons of Jesse. When Samuel saw the fine physical attributes of the eldest son, Eliab, he at once thought that he would be the new king. But the Lord immediately stopped him by saying:  ‘Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused  (rejected) him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.’ (1 Sam. 17:7) It could not get any clearer than that my brethren. 

And later on when Bruh David became king, ‘a man after God’s own heart’ (1 Sam. 13:14) on handing over the building of God’s temple to Cousin Sol, he tells him. ‘And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the Lord searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever. Take heed now; for the Lord hath chosen thee to build an house for the sanctuary: be strong, and do it.’ (1 Chr. 28:9-10) Oh my people wiser words were never spoken from a father to a son. And those are the kind of words we ought to be speaking to our children in these ungodly and lawless days. 

Now, Jesus also mentions God judging our hearts when He says to the Pharisees: ‘Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.’ (Luke 16:15) And we all know that some things considered acceptable to men are disliked by God to such an extent, that they become abominations to Him; obscene, totally revolting, and hated. 

Then, there are Bruh Paul’s words on the subject of God trying our hearts. In recalling his conduct to the Thessalonians, he says: ‘For our exhortation was not of deceit (error), nor of uncleanness, nor in guile (deceit): But as we were allowed of  (approved by) God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth (tests) our hearts.’ (1 Thess. 2:3-4) 

And I like how the scholars explain that verse. They say: “Allowed” means that God had carefully examined Paul and found him to be fit for the ministry, thus entrusting the apostle with this responsibility. “Trieth” means that the Lord examines him daily to see whether he remains fit and can continue in the ministry. This habitual divine scrutiny is the reason Paul seeks to please God rather than men. God, then, is the ultimate cause and motive of Paul’s ministry, not impurity (vs.3), or of covetousness (vs.5).’ 

And there is no better note to end on today than on that my people; the utmost importance of pleasing God and not man, if we expect our witness to be worth anything! Much LOVE!

…the outward appearance of man is deceitful…for it’s in the heart of man…that his true motives lie…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Today’s Scrip-Bit   1 June 2024 Philippians 4:5b.

01 Jun 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Philippians 4:5b.       The Lord is at hand.

And this first day of June 2024, a lazy-day Saturday, has opened bright, sunshiny and warm! All thanks be to God for letting us see another day on this earth with the wondrous help of His Son Jesus Christ looking out for us in heaven, and His Holy Spirit dwelling within us down here to lead, guide and comfort us in all our troubles! What a wonderful God we worship my brethren! And am I ever so sorry and heart-broken for those who don’t feel the same way, because His is the only real truth, LOVE and peace we’ll ever experience in this currently ungodly and evil world. 

Now, let’s show our heavenly Father how much we LOVE and need Him by offering up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer with all sincerity of heart. 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 as always, if our hearts were sincere, then we know that He heard us and will respond positively to our prayer. For as John says in his first epistle. ‘And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: and if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions we desired (asked) of him.’ (1 John 5:14-15) Again I say, what a wonderful God we serve! For we know that there is no prayer He likes to hear more than that we LOVE and need Him and desire to spend time with Him. So, by now, if our prayer was sincere, it was answered, and we should be all feeling a sense of peace, rest and joy in the Lord’s LOVING presence. (smile) 

Now yesterday we dealt with the first part of Philippians 4:5 – ‘Let your moderation (gentleness) be known unto all men.’ Today we’ll look at the second half of that verse: ‘The Lord is at hand.’ (Phil. 4:5b) And we all wonder what that means to us in these turbulent times. Well, the scholars, after telling us that Moderation means “graciousness” or “sweet reasonableness.” And that the believer who is at peace with his fellow Christian (vs. 2) and who rejoices always (vs. 4) is indeed a gracious, reasonable person. 

They go on to tell us that  ‘The Lord is at hand means two things. First, His (Jesus’) return to earth is near. His imminent coming as judge encourages the Christian to be “gracious” unto all men, for He will judge the believer for all of his actions toward all people, and will avenge all wrongs committed by others against Him. Second the “Lord is at hand” spiritually. The Lord, being presently near should free the Christian from fear and anxiety. Hence the command of verse 6: ‘Be careful (anxious) for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.’ (Phil. 4:6) 

So friends, with the Lord’s coming to judge the earth being imminent, and His powerful presence spiritually abiding with us, we should not be afraid or worried about whatever circumstances we encounter. And as we said in an earlier session, that’s not always easy to do when your whole world seems to be tumbling down around you, but if you constantly pray and give thanks, and study the Word, while saving it deep in your hearts for those troublesome times, then it will help you to find that ‘Peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep (guard) your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.’ (Phil. 4:7) 

And God’s peace is what gets us through those tough times. We probably won’t understand it, but if we are sincere in our devotions and discipleship, we will feel it. Now, I can vouch for that from personal experience, for I felt it very powerfully some years ago when I was vacationing in California. That morning I was in the process of writing the Bit, when they told me I had a phone call from my mother’s helper back in Canada. It was an unexpected call, but deep down I knew that something disastrous had happened. And when she told me that my mother had died, like all the air just went out of my body, and I was like a deflated balloon. 

But shortly thereafter, don’t ask me how, I was suddenly filled with a sense of peace and calm and went on about my business. My friends and family were concerned that I wasn’t crying and grieving, and so was I. And it’s not that I wasn’t sad and disappointed, but that peace that emanates from our good God, had put me in a different space, helping me to understand that there was nothing I could do about it, and therefore should keep my wits about me. But I did grieve and mourn and cry later on. (smile) So, it’s not always easy to put the Lord’s words into action, but if we’re serious about it, with His awesome help it is very possible. 

And I’m chuckling here because I had not intended to go down that path. What I had planned on doing was to share a couple of other scriptures re the ‘Lord is at hand.’ Like this one from James’ epistle. ‘Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold the husbandman (farmer) waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish (establish) your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh (is near). Grudge (grumble) not one against another brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold the judge standeth before the door.’ (James 5:7-9)  

Those are excellent words of warning my people, especially for these unruly and lawless times, when everybody’s doing their own thing, and godliness is sadly lacking in the land. And what better note to close on than these words of Jesus to John in the Book of Revelation. ‘Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.’ (Rev. 22:7) Ah friends, I plead with us to heed Jesus’ warning, for we know not when He comes, but He can come at any time, like a thief in the night, and if we’re not ready, if we’re found wanting, then crapaud smoke we pipe! Much LOVE!

…a wise believer is always ready…

Hear our podcast at  https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Today’s Scrip-Bit   11 May 2024 Matthew 6:24b.

11 May 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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)
 
 Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ  

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