18 Sep 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a big splash for Jesus, a day in the life, a useful purpose, abide with you for ever, adrenaline, ambassadors, another comforter, aura of love, bear witness, Christians, confidence, conquerors, enthusiasm, famine, friends, get a move on, get excited, glorious kingdom, glory hallelujah, grace, harvest, holy spirit, Holy Trinity, humble servants, in christ, invincible, Jesus Christ, jobs, lies, LOVE, LOVE Revolution, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, number one job, our Lord and Saviour, perfect remedy, plan, pray the Father, promise, purpose for our lives, rain, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, salvation, snow, spiritual armour, spreading the gospel, steadfast faith, surrender, taunts, thanks and praise, The Day of Pentecost, the good news, the Spirit of truth, the will of God, truth, ulitmate priority, wiles, wisdom, working for Jesus
John 14:16. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever.
Come on down friends and neighbours, it’s Monday morning, time to get excited about simply living. Time to give some thanks and praise that we haven’t seen our pictures or read our names in the obits this morning. Mama Yo! That means the Creator still has some plan and purpose for our lives down here, otherwise we’d be gone up on high, or down low, already.
So let’s get up and get a move on nuh. It’s going to be another glorious day in the life, regardless of what happens. And how do I know that? Well it’s obvious; because we are in Christ, and He is in us, which means we can handle anything that comes against us with His awesome help. Glory be mih people!
And for those of us who are finding it difficult to get up and get going, we have the perfect remedy for you; our Monday Morning Battle Hymn. It’s guaranteed to put you in the groove. So let’s declare it right now, in loud, harmonious and enthusiastic voice.
‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle. Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Yes mih breddren, yuh see we weren’t lying when we said it would pick you up. So now that the adrenaline is flowing and your engine is purring like a well-tuned and well-oiled machine, let’s go out into the mish-mash world that we currently live in and make a big splash for Jesus, as He desires of us, His earthly ambassadors.
Remember, that working for Jesus is our number one job, our ultimate priority as Christians, and it’s not something we can do when, and if ever we feel so inclined. It’s something we have to be constantly working at. The good news of Jesus, like the mail, has to be declared to mankind each and every day, be it snow or rain, harvest or famine.
For we know not when Jesus is coming back, but whenever He does, those who are not living under his saving grace won’t ever have a chance to do so again. That’s why we have to get moving, get seriously working on Christ’s LOVE Revolution, so that hopefully none will eventually be lost, as our heavenly Father so earnestly desires.
And we are able carry out those desires because of the promise Jesus made to the disciples and also to us as He was getting ready to go back to heaven. ‘And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever.’ And that Comforter was His Holy Spirit which began indwelling ALL believers from the Day of Pentecost.
Jesus knew that His followers would be helpless without Him around, but He, as a man, could only be in one place at any time. However His Spirit could exist in each and every man at the same time. And listen to the end of Jesus’ monologue when He told the disciples about how the world would hate them because they knew not God. (John 15:18-25)
‘But when the Comforter (Helper) is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me. And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning.’ (John 15:26-27) And by extension my people, the Comforter , the Holy Spirit, the Helper, sent from Christ, is also beside us as we bear witness of Christ. What a magnificent assurance of God being with us with each breath and step we take in this confused and crazy, strife-filled world!
Now here is some interesting info from the scholars re the Procession of the Spirit. ‘15:26. The action of the word translated “proceedeth” is “in the process” – “continually proceeds.” The eternal procession of the Spirit means that He continually proceeds from beside, not out of, the Father. If the Holy Spirit came out of God, He would be less than God. To be more specific, the Holy Spirit not only proceeds from the Father, but also from the Son. This means the Father and the Son continually send the Holy Spirit.
This in no way suggests the Spirit is less in deity than are the Father or Son. Instead it explains the relationship among the three eternal persons of the Trinity. Illustration: Just as Jesus came to do the will of the Father, so the Holy Spirit is sent to speak not of Himself, but of Christ (16:13). Application: In this sense the Holy Spirit is the Promise of the Father who has been given to every Christian (Acts 1:4; 2:39).’
Ah friends, I do hope that somewhat lengthy explanation clears up some the mystery of the relationships of the Holy Trinity. Nevertheless, let’s go out and do diligent and excellent work in spreading the gospel and the LOVE of Jesus, as we are called to do nuh. Much LOVE!
…without the Comforter…the Holy Spirit…to lead and guide us…Christians would be completely lost…
11 Sep 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a little child shall lead them, accepting Christ, adrenaline, antidote, apathy, aura of love, beasts of the field, blues, break the bow, confidence, covenant, crapaud smoke them pipe, enthusiasm, eternal harmony, faithfulness, fowls of heaven, generous help, glorious kingdom, God's promise, holy spirit, Hosea, humble servants, invincible, Israelites, Jesus Christ, joy, judgement, justice, kingdom work, lies, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, loving kindness, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, negative derivatives, no crying, no more death, no sorrow, pain, passed away, peace, primary purpose, redemption, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, righteousness., salvation, sin, sleeping bags, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, tears of joy, the fatling, the former things, the leopard lie down with the kid, the tabernacle of God, the wolf shall dwell with the lamb, the young lion, trust, ungodly world, unsaved souls, wipe away all tears, wisdom
Isaiah 11:6. The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.
Come on friends, it’s Monday, time to roll out of our sleeping bags and get ourselves together to go and labour. We had the chance to rest and relax over the weekend, and it’s our fault if we didn’t do so. Now both the Master and massa are calling out our names for work this morning.
Oh, I know Mondays are hard for many of us, that’s why we have our Monday Morning Battle Hymn to liven us up. So let’s sing it now with as much enthusiasm as we can muster. You’ll be surprised at how it will drive away your Monday morning blues.
As one now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Yes friends, that’s the antidote for Monday’s apathy! (smile) And as the adrenaline is now rushing through our bodies, let’s take advantage of it nuh and get going, for there’s plenty kingdom work to be done.
Ah mih people, the times they are rough, and getting rougher by the minute, and there are still lots of lost and unsaved souls in the world. That means we have plenty work ahead of us; convincing the many unbelievers that accepting Christ as their Lord and Saviour and living for Him is the wisest thing they can do. One of the things we can point out to them is the everlasting peace that will envelop the world when Jesus sets up His eventual kingdom.
Our Bit paints such a lovely picture of those times. ‘The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.’ How beautiful that is to the mind’s eye! That’s the total opposite to what’s happening today. And even we believers can take heart from that awesome promise of our great God.
And if you believe that is just ‘jestering,’ on God’s part, then hear Him promise the same thing through Hosea to the Israelites as He woos them back, because of His great LOVE for them. ‘And in that day will I make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven, and with the creeping things of the ground: and I will break (shatter) the bow and the sword and the battle out of the earth, and will make them to lie down safely.
And I will betroth thee unto me for ever; yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgement (justice), and in LOVING-kindness, and in mercies. I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness: and thou shalt know the Lord. (Hos.2:18-20)
What awesome promises friends! Only the omnipotent Creator of the universe can make such promises! And if you’re thinking, well that was oh so long ago, who says it still hold true? Then listen to the Lord’s promise in Revelation.
John confidently declares in his vision of the new heaven and the new earth: ‘And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.’ (Rev.21:3-4)
Oh my brethren, if that doesn’t touch you deep down in your soul and bring tears of joy to your spirit, then I don’t know what will nuh! For that means all sin and it’s ugly, negative derivatives, would have been wiped out and we’d be living in peace and eternal harmony with our wonderful God right there with us! Mercy, mercy me! I really can’t think of a better situation than that!
And according to the scholars, when that takes place: ‘A primary purpose of redemption will be accomplished: the complete fellowship of God with His redeemed people. In the eternal state, there will be no tears, death, sorrow, crying or pain. Everything will become new. God’s promises are true, and He is always faithful to His Word (cf.19:11).’
Beelzebub can’t promise anything remotely resembling that friends, so please let’s wake up and get a move on for Jesus, as the time for His return is drawing nigh – it gets closer every day. And who isn’t saved by then… well… crapaud smoke them pipe! Much LOVE!
…to live and work for Jesus…is the wisest decision ever…
21 Aug 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a fortress, a paycheck, a refuge, all my fears, amenity filled, assurance, aura of love, buoyed spirits, Christians, confidence, deliver him, diligent soldiers, enthusiasm, evil, for Jesus' sake, for our good, friends, God's work, good cheer, he delivered me, he heard me, holy spirit, honour him, humble servants, I sought the Lord, in our hands, invincible, ironic situation, Jesus Christ, jobs, join the fray, keep a roof over our heads, Knowing God Intimately, lies, light, live high on the hog, long life, LOVE, modern day life, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, no work no eat, overcome the world, problems, raised spirits, rejuvenation of spirit, renewed vitality, rest, salt, salvation, satisfy him, servants, set him on high, spiritual armour, spread the good news, steadfast faith, surrender, taunts, the answer to everything, the enemy's ranks, the LOVE of Jesus, the oppressed, times of troubles, tribulation, trust, truth, ungodly world, wiles, wine and roses, wisdom, work
Psalm 34:4. I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.
And now it’s Monday friends, so what’s the action eh? And everybody throws their hands in the air and excitedly shout: ‘Work! Monday means it’s time for work! Work! Work! Work!’
And I know that some of you might think me crazy to even come up with such a scenario, since nobody ever behaves like that, but technically speaking that’s the way it ought to be. Why is that, you demand?
Well for one it gets us out into the world to spread the good news and LOVE of Jesus, and secondly it earns us a paycheck so we can buy food and clothing and keep a roof over our heads. As Bruh Paul says, ‘no work, no eat.’(smile) (2 Thess.3:10) So as true Christians, anyone of those reasons should get us excited enough to want to go to work.
But unfortunately that’s not the case; very few of us even want to go to work, much less get excited at the thought, but we still expect to eat heartily and otherwise live high on the hog. This easy, amenity filled, comfortable modern-day life has certainly spoiled us. And the sad part is that many who want to work, can’t find any – another ironic situation in our screwed up society.
But for those of us who are blessed to have jobs, please let’s get it together and go out and do our best, as Jesus desires of us. And if you’re not feeling up to scratch this particular Monday morning, then please sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with me, it’s guaranteed to lift your spirits and get your adrenaline running.
So all together now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Yeh friends, that was surely encouraging! I can already feel your buoyed spirits, so let’s get a move on and join the fray on behalf of Jesus. Let’s be strong and diligent soldiers in His army. Let’s go out there and be worth our salt, let our lights shine brightly in the darkness of this evil world. It would be so wonderful if we could illuminate the entire world with the brilliant light that’s Jesus!
That’s what the Father desires of us, so that He doesn’t even lose one of His magnificent creations to the enemy. It’s all in our hands my brethren, so please, let’s make it happen nuh…for Jesus’ sake.
That brings us to our Bit. ‘I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.’ What wonderful assurance emanates from those words my fellow believers! Bruh David lived them personally, which means we can do the same.
As I’ve been saying over the last couple of days, seeking the Lord is the wisest and most important decision we can ever make in this life, for what happens in the next life all hinges on what we do now. But enough preaching, (smile) let’s hear what the Word has to say about it all.
First hear Bruh David from Psalm 9 – Praise for God’s justice. ‘The Lord also will be a refuge (stronghold) for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.’ (Ps.9:9-10) Words of absolute truth my fellow believers! NOBODY who has ever put their sincere trust in God can say He has forsaken them!
Now listen to these words from Psalm 91 – God is a refuge and a fortress. God says: ‘Because he hath set his LOVE upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. With long life will I satisfy him, and show him my salvation.’ (Ps.91:9-16)
Powerful words my brethren, though we can’t expect to have no problems in this life. Remember following Jesus is not all wine and roses, but as He said: ‘In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33b)
So let’s go out this Monday morning with raised spirits and complete assurance, while we enthusiastically and diligent do God’s work, knowing that despite the problems which may come, He’ll eventually work them all out for our good. Much LOVE!
…knowing God intimately…is the answer to everything…
20 Aug 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a fool's wsidom, all my fears, choose christ, Christ's body, delivers them out of their troubles, eternal life, evil, exalt, falter, glorify, God's great earth, guide me, hang out with Jesus, he delivered me, he heard me, I am weak, I sought the Lord, joint heirs with Christ, judgement day, just a closer walk with thee, keep me from all wrong, let it be, listening to God's word, live and reign forever, LOVE, make a decision, my burden shares, my feeble life, my plea, none but thee, on the outside looking in, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, personally testifies, pilgrim's journey, praise, praise in the highest, receive wisdom, receptive hearts, redeems, sacrifice of praise, salvation, sincere emotion, sing, snares, surrender, sweet harmony, take Jesus to heart, the children of God, the church, the face of the Lord, the gospel of Jesus, the house of the Lord, the Lamb that was slain, the Life, the remembrance of them, the righteous, the righteous cry, the soul of his servants, the Truth, the voice of reason, the Way, thou art strong, thy kingdom shore, toil, trust, under his wings, understanding, ungodly world, wisdom, wise, worship
Psalm 34:4. I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.
Well hello there friends and neighbours, welcome to another glorious day on God’s great earth. And the fact that today is Sunday, the Lord’s Day makes it so much better. That’s because we get to gather in the house of the Lord and sing and praise and worship Him and receive wisdom and understanding by listening to His word expounded to our receptive hearts!
What an honour! Yeh friends, there’s nothing better than a gathering of Christ’s body, the church, where we exalt and glorify our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. And we’ll get today’s show on the road by raising our voices to high heaven in the singing of the old but greatly cherished and popular hymn ‘Just a closer walk with thee.’ So without further ado, let’s offer up the sacrifice of praise with our lips in sweet harmony and sincere emotion.
‘I am weak, but Thou art strong; Jesus, keep me from all wrong; I’ll be satisfied as long As I walk, let me walk close to Thee. (Refrain: Just a closer walk with Thee, Grant it, Jesus, is my plea, Daily walking close to Thee, Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.) Through this world of toil and snares, If I falter, Lord, who cares? Who with me my burden shares? None but Thee, dear Lord, none but Thee.
(Refrain) When my feeble life is o’er, Time for me will be no more; Guide me gently, safely o’er To Thy kingdom shore, to Thy shore. (Refrain: Just a closer walk with Thee, Grant it, Jesus, is my plea, Daily walking close to Thee, Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.)’
Ah mih breddren, a close walk with Jesus on this pilgrim’s journey here on earth is the BEST and WISEST action we can ever take! Why, you ask? Because He knows us better than anyone else and also cares for us more than anyone else! That’s reason enough for me to walk closely with Him. As Bruh David personally testifies in our Bit: ‘I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.’
Now if that was good for Bruh David, why wouldn’t it be good for us too eh? Absolutely no reason whatsoever my people! For our God doesn’t regress…in fact He got better after Bruh David’s time by sending His Son Jesus to die for our dastardly sins, so we could have the options of salvation and spending eternity in heaven with Him.
Wow! How in heaven’s name can any human being consider themselves wise, if they don’t grab the opportunity to hang out with Jesus and hold on tightly to His strong and safely guiding hand eh? Any action other than that friends, is a fool’s wisdom, plain and simple!
Listen to some of Bruh David’s justification for his stated position. ‘The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry. The face of the Lord is against them that do evil, to cut off (destroy) the remembrance of them from the earth. The righteous cry and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of their troubles. The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit (crushed in spirit).
Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivers him out of them all. He keepeth all his bones: not one of them is broken. Evil shall slay the wicked: and they that hate the righteous shall be desolate (condemned or held guilty). The Lord redeemeth the soul of his servants: and none of them that trust in him shall be desolate (condemned).’ (Ps.34:15-22)
Yes my fellow believers, the Lord looks out for all those who sincerely surrender and trust Him enough to come under His marvellous wings! Does any other Deity offer such assurances? Definitely not! Who heals a broken heart and comforts a wounded spirit eh? None but the Lord God Almighty! Who hears the cry of the righteous and delivers them eh? The Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, that’s Who!
And furthermore, our wonderful God has the wicked in His sights, ready to destroy them when the time is right. And Bruh David was experiencing all of that before Jesus came, and since He came and sacrificed His sinless life for us, things have gotten even better! We are now eligible to become children of God and joint heirs with Christ! Glory to God my brethren!
And all of God’s saints declared loudly and proudly: ‘Blessed is the Lamb that was slain for us! May He live and reign forever! Exalt His holy name, give Him praise in the highest, for He truly deserves it!’
Yes friends, there is no other name that’s higher than Jesus’! That’s one of the ways the Father rewarded Him for doing His will without complaining. So, in light of all that, shall we truly take Jesus to heart? I certainly hope so. Otherwise we’d be making the biggest and most serious mistake of our lives. Remember believing in Jesus and accepting Him as Lord and Saviour is the ONLY WAY one can get to heaven and the Father.
Remember, Jesus said it Himself: ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.’ (John 14:6) Remember too that Jesus doesn’t, or rather cannot lie, so if He says it’s so, then it’s so! Therefore it’s up to each and every individual who hears the gospel of Jesus to make a decision to accept or reject Him.
But just to remind you, if you choose the latter option, you’ll be left on the outside looking in come judgement day, and it won’t be a very pleasant experience, to say the least. So please listen to the voice of reason crying out in this evil and ungodly world…and choose Christ. Much LOVE!
…be wise…hook up with Jesus…and let Him lead you to the Father…it will be heavenly…for all eternity…
17 Aug 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a new slate, a sad state of affairs, abundance, almighty god, another day in the life, beglad, bless the Lord, blessings, boast in the Lord, calamitous times, Christian, compassionate heart, controversial topic, courage, creative skills, creativity, curse, dead in sins, delivered me, divine protection, eternal separation from God, eternity, exalt His name, failure, faith, favour, for Jesus' sake, from all my fears, gospel truth, grace, harmony, he heard me, help, hurt, I sought the Lord, in the name of Jesus, Jesus, joy, LOVE, magnanimity, magnify the Lord, marvellous feat, mercy, negative word, our heavenly Father, positive outlook, power, praise and worship, problems, prosper, redemption, rejection, sacrifice, salvation, saved him, sorrow, strife, succeed, talent, the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob, the Holy Trinity, the humble shall hear, the LOVE of Jesus, this poor man cried, Thursday Blessings, to die for us, tragedy, true living God, trust, walking with God, wisdom, worry
Psalm 34:4. I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.
And then it was Thursday! Another day in the life; a fresh, new slate, one filled with the grace and mercy of Almighty God, our heavenly Father!
How wonderful is that eh, just knowing that you can handle anything that comes against you with His awesome help? I’d say there were no appropriate words to truly describe that scenario.
But then our God is like no other; He is the ONE and ONLY TRUE LIVING GOD who made heaven and earth and all therein. What immense might, power, wisdom and creative skills it must have taken to perform such a marvellous feat!
And then, to show His magnanimity, even when we were dead in sins, He sent His One Son, Jesus to die for us, so that we could receive salvation and spend eternity with Him. That’s why we praise and worship Him with our whole heart, mind, body and soul!
And who is Jesus, you ask? The glorious ONE who brought heavenly LOVE and redemption to be spread around the whole earth!
Now listen to this description of that LOVE from Fil Anderson in an article from In Touch Magazine titled ‘But for Sorrow.’
Fil says: ‘The LOVE of Jesus is the most prevailing and magnificent force in this world. It’s stronger than every rejection, every failure, every tragedy, every worry, and every hurt. And it’s the source of our deepest joy, even in sorrow.’
Oh friends, I believe that is possibly the best description I’ve ever heard of Jesus’ LOVE, for it encompasses EVERYTHING! It brings us joy untold, even in tough, calamitous times and can help us cure all our problems. There is absolutely NOTHING greater in this world than the LOVE of Jesus!
Oh how I wish that many, many more of earth’s people would realize that and place their deepest trust in Him, since He is the ONLY One who can save them from their sins and sorrows and eventually eternal separation from God.
But unfortunately, today, we’re so saturated with the foolish wisdom of man, and listen so closely to the evil forces of the world that we’re turning away from God, rather than turning to Him.
It’s truly a sad state of affairs my Christian brethren, and we have to take some of the blame for that, because we’re not working as diligently and sincerely to enlighten others about Christ as we should.
And it’s not like the message we’re supposed to spread is a lie, but it’s gospel truth! From way back when, man knew on which side his bread was buttered and put their sole trust, depended fully on God.
Listen to Bruh David’s declaration in our Bit. ‘I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.’
What other religious faith can make that claim with any real truth eh mih people? NONE WHATSOEVER! Only the true believers in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the Holy Trinity, can make such a heartfelt and true declaration!
And hear how Bruh David continues after our Bit. ‘They looked unto Him, and were lightened (radiant): and their faces were not ashamed. This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.’ (Ps.34:5-6)
Ah friends, why won’t the world turn to our magnificent and magnanimous God eh; the ONLY One who can save them out of all their troubles? Most of them don’t even want to hear about God… and don’t even mention the name of Jesus, for he is the most controversial topic n the universe.
And that’s why He is just the GREATEST and the SWEETEST and the MOST LOVING! Praise His Holy name my brethren! For He indeed deserves infinite praise for His wonderful work and sacrifice on our behalf.
And now I’ll call on us to do what Bruh David declared at the beginning of the psalm. ‘I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make her boast in the Lord: the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad. O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together.’ (Ps.34:1-3)
Now that is exactly how a Christian ought to behave! And friends, if we’d only do those things on a serious and continual basis, both our individual lives and our world would be so much better off, filled with much more harmony, and much less strife than it currently contains.
So let’s try doing better nuh, for Jesus’ sake. He did so much for us, the least we can do is spread his name and His word around the earth.
And all God’s children declared a loud and bold and sincere ‘Amen!’
Now let’s go home proclaiming our Thursday Blessings, blessings we receive for truly believing. In unison now: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance!
I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life!
I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’
And since blessings are supposed to be shared, it’s our bounden duty to go out and share them with others now. Much LOVE!
…walking sincerely with God…doesn’t mean you won’t have problems…but you’ll be able to handle them successfully…with His amazing help…
14 Aug 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adrenaline rush, aura of love, breath is in his nostrils, Christian faith, Christians, confidence, confidence in princes, crapaud smoke yuh pipe, cursed be the man, disbelief, enthusiasm, enthusiastic, esteemed, faith, faithfulness, forgiveness, glorious kingdom, glory to God, gospel truth, grace, holy spirit, hope, human, humble servants, I will sing praises unto my God, invincible, it is better to trust in the Lord, Jesus Christ, joy, lies, LOVE, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, no better way, passion, passionate, peace, put confidence in man., rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, rest, righteousness., salvation, saviour, sincere, spiritual armour, spread the good news of Jesus, steadfast faith, the blessedness of trusting God, the Son of man, to be happy in Jesus, trust, trust and obey, truth, ungodly world, whose hearts departs from the Lord, wisdom
Psalm 118:8-9. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.
Monday, oh Monday, How I LOVE thee! Let me count the ways! Oh boy, I can’t wait for you to roll around each week. I get so excited on Sunday, knowing that you’re just round the corner! And why is that you ask? It’s simple: so that I get back out into the evil, ungodly workday world and work hard to spread the good news of Jesus to all and sundry.
Yeh friends, please remember that bringing people to Jesus, or rather causing them to come to Jesus, through talking about Him and living a life that sincerely mirrors our talk is a major priority in our Christian faith. And we can only do a good job at that when we are sincere and enthusiastic, passionate and energized, truly believing what we preach.
That’s why proper preparation for Monday on the weekend is ever so important. But since we are all human, fragile, sinful and weak, we don’t always do the right thing. Consequently, we have our Monday Morning Battle Hymn to jolt us out of Monday morning emotional dilemma. (smile) So let’s sing it now nuh, putting all the enthusiasm and passion we have into it.
As one voice now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Awright mih breddren, I can see that brought on an adrenaline rush! Please don’t lose it, but allow it to catapult you into your day, as you walk with Jesus ever and always behind, beside and before you. Oh glory to God friends that we have such a wonderful Saviour!
And why do we do what we do? Because we have such an impeccable, unbreakable, heartwarming trust in Him! We fully and rightfully believe what our Bit says: ‘It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.’
Only a fool, or one wholly committed to evil would deny the awesome truth of those statements, which were inspired by the Holy Spirit of God, who is incapable of lying. That means there can be no doubt as to their wisdom. And if you don’t believe me, then let’s see if these scripture passages can change your mind. (smile)
First up are exceedingly wise words from Psalm 146 – The blessedness of trusting God. The psalmist unhesitatingly proclaims: ‘While I live will I praise the Lord: I will sing praises unto my God while I have any being. Put not you trust in princes, nor in the son of man (a human being), in whom there is no help (salvation). His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish. Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God: Which made heaven, and earth, the sea, and all that therein is: which keepeth truth for ever:’ (Ps.146:2-6)
Oh friends, please study those very convincing words very carefully, (smile) for they contain the utmost truth. Now listen to the prophet Isaiah, who corroborates the psalmist by simply saying: ‘Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of (why should he be esteemed)? (Is.2:22)
And why should man really be esteemed eh, especially above God, when he has nothing infinite to offer. The day he stops breathing his flesh dies and returns to the earth and he is no longer a viable entity. Meanwhile Almighty God was there even before the beginning, and will still be there after the end! He has power and might, trust and faithfulness, grace, mercy, LOVE, forgiveness, etc. etc! So wouldn’t it be wiser to put our absolute trust in Him rather than man?
And all God’s faithful saints declared a loud and sure: ‘Obviously!’
And we’ll end with these pointed words from the prophet Jeremiah. ‘Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man (strength), and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord. For he shall be like the heath (a shrub) in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness; in a salt land and not inhabited.’ (Jer.17:5-6)
Oh my people, I can’t say any more than that. Those are the words of our God, and we chose NOT to believe them at our peril. Please remember that our God does not make idle promises, so whatever He says He truly means. And if you fall on His negative side through your own fault or disbelief, then, crapaud smoke yuh pipe! Much LOVE!
…trust and obey…for there’s no better way…to be happy in Jesus…than to trust and obey…
12 Aug 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a better tomorrow, a tree without roots, acceptable, ambassadors, anarchy, anger, Anselm, be not conformed to this world, be transformed, behaviour, bitter trials, blessings in disguise, change our thinking, charles stanley, choose hope, Christian experience, corners us, culture, deceiving your own selves, disaster, doers of the Word, elusive ideal, eternity, faith, freedom, God's will, God's Word, gospel truth, History, hooking our star, implanted word, in league with Jesus, knowledge of their past, leading the parade, leave all the consequences to Him, leaving your soul in limbo, live happily ever after, looking on the dark side, Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, Marcus Garvey, never easily gained, obedience, obey God, on any street corner, optimism, origin, our desires, perfect, personal expereince, pessimism, pilgrims, power, prove what is good, responsibility, saints, salvation, save your souls, separation from God, sin, slow to speak, slow to wrath, soldiers, source of true hope, swift to hear, tested, the chain of life, the end of time, the fire, the flood, the mountain top, the new man, the old man, the renewing of your mind, the valley of the shadow of death, the worst possible scenario, to Jesus' bandwagon, transformation, utopia, walk to freedom, weakness, while there is life there is hope, wickedness, will of God, work hard at
Romans 12:2. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
Wonderful days are here again! O Glory be my people! And our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is leading the big parade down Main Street decked out in all His splendour and glory!
Let’s hope that you are a member of that glorious band of soldiers and saints, pilgrims and ambassadors for Jesus, else you’ll be missing out on the most important aspect of your life; your salvation and what will happen to your spirit in eternity!
Yeh friends, only when you are in league with Jesus, do you know that you will live happily ever after with Him till the end of time!
So why don’t you make that decision today eh, and stop leaving your soul in limbo? For there are only two places it can go after death; heaven or hell. And believe you me, separation from Almighty God is the last thing you want to happen to you; it’s the worst possible scenario in the chain of life.
Anyway, today is Saturday, so let’s consider some quotes from our friend Anselm, as we do every Saturday, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. Here is the first one: ‘Once you choose hope, anything’s possible.’
And that’s gospel truth my fellow believers, for we know that whilst there is life, there is always hope. And the greatest source of true hope is found in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! That gives us even further confirmation of the wisdom of hooking our star to His bandwagon.
Now the second quote says: ‘Pessimism leads to weakness, optimism to power.’ More obvious gospel truth friends! You can’t be pessimistic, looking on the dark side all the time and expect to be powerful!
And this next quote is very interesting especially for us Christians. ‘What seems to us as bitter trials are often blessings in disguise.’ And why is that you ask? Simply because it’s especially true in our Christian experience.
We can’t grow in our Christian faith unless we are tested; pass through the fire and the flood to see how strong we truly are. And oftimes what looks like a total disaster is only a trial that has a blessing waiting on the other side if you pass the test.
And that quote segues very nicely into this one: ‘There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountaintop of our desires.’
Yes my brethren, we all talk about freedom, and we all want freedom, but freedom is NEVER easily gained. That’s something a lot of us nowadays still need to learn, and stop talking about it as though you can just go out and buy it cheaply or pick it up on any street corner.
It’s something you have to work hard and constantly at, while passing through the dark, shadowy valleys many times. More lives have been lost through history in the name of freedom than any other ideal. And even when you seem to have attained the mountaintop, you still won’t have freedom, because it’s an elusive ideal, linked to utopia.
Oh friends, we are NEVER really free, since, if we want to do it right, that thing called responsibility ALWAYS corners us. In any society, true freedom leads to anarchy, if we all want to do what we want, when and how we want to do it. Hn! Hn! But how did we get on that discourse eh? (smile)
And the last quote is one ascribed to Marcus Garvey. It says: ‘A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots.’ No doubt about that people!
As the saying goes; if you don’t know where you’re coming from, you won’t know where you’re going to! You must know something about your background to successfully plan your future. That’s why History is so important in our lives.
And that plays right into our Bit. ‘And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.’
Yes, my fellow believers, we know exactly where we’re coming from – a state of total sin – but we also know where we’re going to – a state of total transformation in Jesus Christ. We’re taking off the old, sinful man and putting on the new regenerated, transformed, cleansed and saved one. Glory Hallelujah!
And to do that successfully it has to all begin in our minds. Thus James says: ‘Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath (to get angry). For the wrath (anger) of man worketh not (does not produce) the righteousness of God.
Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity (abundance) of naughtiness (wickedness), and receive with meekness the engrafted (implanted) word, which is able to save your souls. But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.’ (James 1:19-22)
There we have it friends! if we want to put on the new man, then we have to drastically change first our thinking, then our behaviour. We can’t behave and think the same we were before finding Christ. And it’s not always easy to do. But as I keep saying, if we go to God sincerely seeking help, He will ALWAYS help us.
I speak there from personal experience. But you have to listen to Him, and do what He says, when He says to do it. That’s called obedience to His will and word. (smile) So today, let’s go out and obey nuh, for that’s wisdom in spades! Much LOVE!
…the best way to live…obey God…and leave all the consequences to Him…(Charles Stanley)
10 Aug 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a cross bearing affair, a senior, a spring chicken, a young pup, abundance, actions speak louder than words, agenda, alive in God's kingdom, almighty god, ambassadors, an old fowl, ashamed, ashamed of Jesus, bear his cross, Calvary, cannot be my disciple, celebrating, christianity, Christians, come after me, comfortable life, compassionate heart, compromise, contrariness, courage, creativity, curse, destroyed, disciple, dreams, dreams come true, enjoying to the fullest, eternal life, example of life, faith, favour, focus, for my sake, gain the whole world, hypocrisy, know thyself, lifestyle, loses his life, lost, LOVE Revolution, negative word, one more day, onerous task, pleas for help, prosper, redemption, sacrifice, salvation, save his life, self-control, self-discipline, share our blessings, shortcomings, souring people, spreading the gospel, success, support Jesus in public, talent, tarnishes the image of jesus, the good news of Jesus, the Son of man, the terms of discipleship, the way of life, the wooden cross, the work of Jesus, Thursday Blessings, triumph, turning away from God, undying LOVE, walking our talk, wasting Jesus' sacrifice, wisdom, witness, work while they dream
Luke 14:27. And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.
One more day, just one more day… Yeh friends, one more day to be alive in God’s great kingdom! It’s such a pleasure to be alive again! (smile)
But have you noticed how those one more days quickly add up to many more years? One day you’re a young pup, a spring chicken, then one day you’re suddenly a senior, an old fowl! Hn, hn! But that’s the way of life.
And let’s hope you are enjoying each of those days to the fullest, because that’s what our Lord and Saviour desires for us and why He sacrificed His life on that wooden cross at Calvary. So if we’re not celebrating that triumph, then we’re wasting His sacrifice. And what an awful thing that would be.
But here are a couple of good questions for us. Where is our focus concentrated today eh? And what’s on our agenda?
Hopefully, as true believers, our focus is directly on Almighty God, and the priority on our agenda is doing the work of Jesus; spreading His awesome gospel of undying LOVE, redemption, salvation and eternal life.
And that doesn’t always mean talking, but more so in the example of life that we live. Our lives should realistically reflect the good news of Jesus. And if they aren’t reflecting it, then we’re not doing a good job for our wonderful Leader and Saviour, we’re not being good disciples, good ambassadors for His kingdom.
Consequently, we’re not the true Christians we ought to be. And that’s the major reason why more people are turning away from God today, than turning to Him.
My friends, we are falling down in our Christian witness when we talk one thing, then people see us living contrary to our talk. We’re obviously not walking our talk. And it’s time to do better, if we truly want Christ’s LOVE Revolution to be successful.
And please remember that actions speak much louder than words. So what we do, will usually have a greater impact on others than what we say. Thus the hypocrisy, the compromise and contrariness in our faith walk is souring people on the Christian lifestyle, and consequently on Christ.
And a quote from my ‘I LOVE YOU’ Poster reminds us that ‘Dreams come true for those who work while they dream.’ The present day Christian problem seems to be that too many of us are dreaming without working, that’s why we’re not accomplishing as much as we ought to.
Obviously we’re not complying with the words of Jesus in our Bit. ‘And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.’
Yes friends, we each have a cross to bear in our kingdom work; a task we have to perform. Now it doesn’t mean that task is necessarily onerous or body-breaking like Jesus’ cross was, but it always entails some sacrifice.
Earlier on in Luke Jesus outlined the terms of discipleship. ‘And he said to them all, If any man will come after me (desires to follow me), let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow me.
For whosoever will (desires to) save his life, shall lose it; but whosoever will lose (loses) his life for my sake, the same shall save it. For what is a man advantaged (benefited), if he gain the whole world, and lose himself (is destroyed), or be cast away (is lost)?
For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father’s, and of the holy angels.’ (Luke 9:23-26)
There you have it my fellow believers, the terms of discipleships as detailed by our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Now are we living up to those terms? Most of us aren’t. Too many of us have settled for the soft, easy comfortable life our society affords.
And surprisingly, too many of us are ashamed of Jesus! We’re afraid to talk about Him to others. We listen to others put Him down and don’t utter a word in rebuke or support, because we don’t want them to know that we are Christians and think badly of us.
Steups! Ah friends, if we can’t support Jesus in public, that means we hold the opinions of man more important than that of God. And that definitely does not lead to true discipleship, but rather tarnishes the image of our Saviour and His movement.
So today is as good as any to sit down and consider the saying ‘know thyself.’ Let’s sit down and seriously inspect our own lives and see if we’re being true disciples of Jesus. Then ask the Lord to help us in our shortcomings. He won’t ever turn down our sincere pleas for help.
Now let’s go home loudly and proudly declaring our Thursday Blessings. In unison: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance!
I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life!
I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’
And since blessings are meant to be shared, let’s go out and bless others now my fellow believers in Christ! Much LOVE!
…just like Jesus had His cross to bear…all Christians have their crosses too …Christianity is a cross bearing affair…
05 Aug 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a positive frame of mind, a tagline, action, advice, another new morning, Anselm, be glad, be ye strong, blasphemed, blessed are ye, Caribana, Christ's standards, Christ's sufferings, Colossians, do it heartily, ever-faithful God, evil spoken of, exceeding joy, family time, fiery trial, focus on, Friday evening traffic, glorified, God's grace, good stewards, insulted, it rubs off, Lamport Stadium, let not your hands be weak, made in God's image, mythical proportions, negative thinking, negativity, not unto men, Pan competition, partakers of, positive thinking, positivity, problems, rejoice, reproached, results, roti, salvation, Solo, solutions, the heavens opened, the name of Christ, the path of unrighteousness, the reward of inheritance, the spirit of glory, Toronto Caribbean Festival, unto the Lord, vision, whatsoever ye do, wisdom, ye serve the Lord Christ, your work shall be rewarded
2 Chronicles 15:7. Be ye strong therefore, and let not your hands be weak: for your work shall be rewarded.
It’s another new morning…somewhat cloudy, chilly and windy though! (smile) But we’re alive, and God is working diligently within us to bring us up to Christ’s standards.
All glory and thanks be to our heavenly Father who takes such a wonderful interest in each and every one of His children, made so intimately in His very image!
Well today is the big day; the day of the Caribana, sorry, Toronto Caribbean Festival Parade. Hn! Let’s hope that they have better luck than we did yesterday with the Pan Competition.
Ah Lord eh! Would you believe that the day was going along quite well until around four p.m, when the skies suddenly darkened, then the heavens opened, and the rained poured down steadily for over an hour!
Chuh! I was just about to leave home to go and meet my panman friend down the street by Leila’s Roti Shop. The plan was to get a couple of Leila’s nice, big, shrimp rotis, with a couple of banana Solos (T&T pop – the best drink to wash down a roti) then head down to T.O for an evening of beautiful and intense pan.
I left home in the downpour because I knew my friend didn’t have a cell phone and he would be waiting there expectantly for me. But lo and behold, when I got to Leila’s the rain was still pouring down and the skies looked dark like night.
We hung around Leila’s for a while – I ate half my roti and drank half my Solo (smile) but the rain didn’t look like stopping, and I certainly didn’t feel like driving into T.O in that downpour, with all the Friday evening traffic, to go and sit on the hard concrete steps of an open-air Lamport Stadium.
So we decided to shelve the Pan Competition idea, and go home and spend some quality time with our families, because with that kind of weather it might have to be cancelled. And so in the still pouring rain, I dropped him home, then came home myself.
But would you believe, that when I was almost home the ‘so and so’ rain stopped falling! Steups! And after that the evening was clear and beautiful. But by then I definitely wasn’t going back out. In any case my family and I had a good evening together. So it wasn’t too bad after all.
Don’t even know if they still held the Pan Competition. And that was how my one evening of Caribana involvement passed. (smile) But it’s Saturday, so let’s see what quotes our friend Anselm shared this past week.
It seems like he was in a positive frame of mind, since all of them dealt with positivity. Here is the first one: ‘Positive thinking will let you do everything better than negative thinking will.’ And that’s a verified fact!
Now this next quote builds on the first: ‘Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you’ll start having positive results.’ How could it not eh?
Then: ‘In order to carry out a positive action we must develop here a positive vision.’ That’s only logical, since you can’t have action of any kind without some kind of vision.
And this one is the biggie: ‘Positive thinking is more than just a tagline. It changes the way we behave. And I firmly believe that when I am positive, it not only makes me better, but it also makes those around me better.’
And is that ever so true my brethren! That’s why we’re constantly told to surround ourselves with positive people, because it rubs off, just like the negativity of negative people does.
And the final quote: ‘Focus 90% of your time on solutions and only 10% of your time on problems.’ Now that’s advice of mythical proportions! (smile) Too many of us spend too much time belabouring and bewailing our problems, when we should be more focused on solving them.
And there’s no better way to do all of that than by holding on tightly and sincerely to the encouraging and assuring words of our Bit. ‘Be ye strong therefore, and let not your hands be weak: for your work shall be rewarded.’
Now true believers should never have cause to doubt that statement, for the promises of our ever-faithful God are infallible. And we’ll close this series of messages with a couple of interesting and important scriptures.
The first is from Peter, re being good stewards of God’s grace. ‘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)
Finally, listen to these words of absolute wisdom from Bruh Paul to the Colossians. ‘And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men, Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance (salvation): for ye serve the Lord Christ.’ (Col.3:23-24)
Yeh friends, in ALL that we do, it is best to consider that we are serving Christ rather than men, since serving men can surely lead us down the path of unrighteousness. And who wants to tread that unwise path eh? Much LOVE!
…the very word Christian…implies being strong and positive…like Christ…
31 Jul 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a nightmare, Abraham Isaac and Jacob, adrenaline flowing, antodote, aura of love, character traits, Christians, commit thy works unto the Lord, confidence, conquerors, diligence, diligently, enthusiasm, faithfulness, go to work, good and right, grin and bear it, he prospered, heartfelt sincerity, Hezekiah, humble servants, idol worship, in the law, in the service, integrity, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy, lies, LOVE, LOVE to hate, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, poor drivers, rejuvenation of spirit, renewed vitality, rest, rise to the task, salvation, speeding, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, the commandments, the heathen, the house of God, the Lord's work, to seek his God, traffic jams, treacherous journey, trepidation, trust, truth, ungodly hour, ungodly world, walking hand in hand with Jesus, weaving in and out, wisdom, with all his heart, work
2 Chronicles 31:21. And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, and in the law, and in the commandments, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart, and prospered.
And then it was Monday! Yeh friends, it’s that day that we all LOVE to hate, because it means we’ve got to get up out of our warm, comfortable beds at some ungodly hour and get ready to go to work many miles away, facing terrible traffic jams all along our route. It might even mean having to awaken the children and get them to the baby sitter before you even head out on your treacherous journey.
And yes friends, getting on the road these days is nothing but a nightmare; you never know what will happen with the numerous cars on the insufficient roads and the numerous poor drivers unwisely speeding and weaving in and out of the backed up traffic. So there is some amount of reasonable and expected trepidation come Monday morning, but that’s how the society is set up, that’s how we make our living.
And very few of us are blessed to have it any other way. So we just have to do what the saying says: ‘grin and bear it, and do what we have to do to survive and eventually prosper. But my brethren, whenever we’re walking hand in hand with our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, that is exactly what will happen.
But it’s not always easy to get moving early in the morning, that’s why we have an antidote for those Monday difficulties, called our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, which gets our adrenaline flowing and causes us to rise to the task. So let’s belt it out now in unison nuh, with plenty enthusiasm and heartfelt sincerity.
‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Ah mih breddren, the enthusiasm was somewhat lacking, but our choirmaster, Jesus, saw the hungry hope and expectant faith in our hearts and was reassured by it. So now that our motors are humming, let’s go out and work diligently and excellently for Jesus nuh, because that’s what He expects of His followers.
And we have a wonderful example in our Bit of how doing all we do for the Lord with a sincere heart, eventually benefits us. The Good Book tells us: ‘And thus did Hezekiah throughout all Judah, and wrought that which was good and right and truth before the Lord his God. And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, and in the law, and in the commandments, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart, and prospered.’ (1 Chr.31:20-21)
Those words refer to King Hezekiah when he turned Judah away from idol worship and restored them to worshipping the God of their fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. And please notice my brethren, his heart was faithful in all he did and the Lord caused him to prosper. He will do likewise with us if we faithfully seek and serve Him.
And another interesting example of diligence in the Lord’s work is that of Nehemiah when he was rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. His enemies Sanballat and Tobiah tried to tear him away from it, so it would languish and they could destroy him. But Nehemiah had God’s Spirit working in him.
‘And I sent messengers unto them, saying, I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you. Yet they sent unto me four times after this sort, and I answered them after the same manner.’ (Neh.6:3-4)
Yes my fellow believers, that’s how the enemy will try to distract us from doing the Lord’s work. In the meanwhile though, Nehemiah had half the workers armed on the wall prepared to fight, while the other half worked. (Neh.4:13-18)
And wonder of wonders: ‘So the wall was finished in the twenty and fifth day of the month Elul (Aug –Sept), in fifty and two days. And it came to pass, that when all our enemies heard thereof, and all of the heathen that were about us saw these things, they were much cast down in their own eyes; for they perceived that this work was wrought of (accomplished by) our God.’ (Neh.6:15-16)
And who says our great and wonderful, omnipotent and magnificent God doesn’t work in wonderful ways eh!
And we’ll end with this wise and wonderful verse from Cousin Sol. ‘Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established.’ (Prov.16:3) Yeh friends, when we commit our work to God, our plans prosper! That’s wisdom of eternal proportions! Much LOVE!
…integrity…sincerity…diligence…excellence…faithfulness…are some of the character traits EVERY Christian ought to have…
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