03 Oct 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a little while I am with you, a means of restoring faith in you, a new flock of believers, all ye that are upright in heart, amidst all the anxiety and confusion, an everlasting promise of God, be glad in God's loving-kindness, be glad in the Lord, be responsible, be ye not as the horse or mule, by the example we faithful believers set, call ye upon him while he is near, crying out for your help, defeat the simmering unrest in our land, discontent, dissatisfaction and discouragement, divine intervention, embrace your love and compassion, faith, Friday chant, God's omnipotent help, have no understanding, he that trusts in the Lord, he will abundantly pardon, he will have mercy upon him, heard you in an accepted time, holy spirit, I acknowledged my sin, I have heard thee in a time accepted, I will confess my transgressions, in the day of salvation, in the way thou shalt go, instruct and teach thee, Jesus Christ, Jesus is seated at the Father's right hand, let him return unto the Lord, let the wicked forsake his way, LOVE, many sorrows shall be to the wicked, mercy, mercy shall compass him about, mine iniquity have I not hid, now is the accepted time, our sinful world, persecution, plagued by hatred anger and greed, preserve me from trouble, receive not the grace of God in vain, rejoice ye righteous, return backsliders to your fold, running rampant in our world, salvation, seek ye the Lord while he may be found, seeking God, Selah, serious problems are escalating, shall not come near unto him, shout for joy, show them the error of their ways, stand strong and steadfast, stay safe, strife-filled, stubborn horses, surround me with songs of deliverance, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the abundant pardoning of God, the Great tribulation, the most important concern, the simmering unrest, the unrighteous man his thoughts, thou art my hiding place, thou forgavest me mine iniquity, to our God, trusting faith, truth, turbulent times, uncertain times, unexpected storms, ungodly times, unsatisfactory, upright in heart, violence, whose mouth must be held with bit and bridle, wisdom, wise advice, wise guidance, ye shall seek me and shall not find me, you forgave my iniquity
Isaiah 55:6. Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
And then, finally, it was Friday! That much beloved last day of our work week, where we offer up shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday and the weekend is here at last!’ And we ought not to give thanks for only Fridays, but for every day we are granted the amazing and most wonderful grace of God to see a new one, especially a nice, bright and sunshiny, fairly warm day like today, early in the month of October. (smile)
Now, we’re on the late bus, because the ole fella went to bed late, and thus got up late, so there’s no time to lose, (smile) let’s get straight into the scripture passage we want to look at today. It comes from the Book of Isaiah, where he’s telling the people about the abundant pardoning of the Lord. He therefore advises: ‘Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.’ (Is. 55:6-7)
Yes friends, those words are also very applicable to the evil and ungodly situation we have running rampant in our world today! It would be oh so awesome if many of the unrighteous and ungodly would take that wise advice, then our world would not be as strife-filled and plagued by hatred, anger, greed and deceit as it currently is.
That reminds us of Jesus telling the Pharisees: ‘Yet a little while I am (shall be) with you, and then I go unto him that sent me. Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come.’ (John 7:33-34) Obviously the Pharisees did not understand His words, and they still apply to us today, for the wicked and ungodly cannot go to heaven where Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father.
It’s also as Bruh Paul said to the Corinthians, re the Day of Salvation. ‘We then as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain. (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured (helped) thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.) (2 Cor. 6:1-2)
Now, Bruh Paul is there quoting from Is. 49:8, but the important matter is that today, right now, there’s a dire need for salvation, for Jesus can return to take us home at any time on any day, and if we’re not prepared, having accepted him as Lord and Saviour, then crapaud smoke we pipe! We’re remaining here to face enormous hardship, violence and persecution in the seven years of Tribulation, that comes after the Rapture. So it only makes sense to call on Jesus right now, while He is near and may be found.
It’s like Bruh David says in Psalm 32, titled Confession and Forgiveness. ‘I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah. For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found: surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh (near) unto him. Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about (surround) me with songs of deliverance. Selah.’ (Ps. 32:5-7)
Oh my people, these turbulent and uncertain times are when we should all concentrate on turning to God Almighty for succour and relief, for He is the ONLY ONE who can truly and sincerely offer us that. It’s like Bruh David continues in Psalm 32 about God’s plans and desires. He says: ‘I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye. Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee.’ Ps. 32:8-9)
Yes my brethren that’s an everlasting promise of God! If we turn to Him He will show us how to go about this life in a successful manner. And He sent His Holy Spirit to help us do just that! However, too many of us are still behaving like stubborn horses and mules, as though we have no understanding of godly things. But please remember, as Bruh David further warns: ‘Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the Lord, mercy shall compass (surround) him about. Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.’ (Ps. 32:10-11)
Oh my fellow believers, there could be no better advice than that! So please, let’s take it to heart nuh. Let’s turn from our evil ways back to the Lord of our forefathers, so that He can lead and guide us safely, through His Holy Spirit, and we can rejoice and be glad in His LOVING-KINDNESS! Now, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant, seeking divine aid to help us do what we need to do!
Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help. Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times.
We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
Ah friends, we talk a good talk, but our Chrisitan witness is unsatisfactory, and we badly need to improve it, for only then, will we receive divine intervention! Much LOVE!
…seeking God…right now…is the most important concern in today’s world
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
20 Aug 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: all these things shall be added unto you, as the heavens are higher than the earth, be ready to suffer the consequences, boggles our imagination, call ye upon him while he is near, christianity, Dr Charles Stanley, endure to the end with Christ, eternity, faith, forgiving, free will, getting you into trouble with God, God created humans for good, gospel truth, gracious, halfway home, hands on the plough, have it more abundantly, he Sermon on the Mount, he will abundantly pardon, he will have mercy upon him, hold our heads and bawl, holy spirit, humans are more enamoured with evil than good, I am come that they might have life, if only I'd thought before doing it, Jesus Christ, Jesus is the best, lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, let the wicked forsake his way, LOVE, merciful, mercy, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, my thoughts are not your thoughts, my thoughts higher than your thoughts, my ways are not your ways, my ways higher than your ways, negative consequences, not looking back at the past, obey God and leave all the consequences to him, our finite minds, our poor decisions end up hurting innocent people, our wonderful position in Christ Jesus, return unto the Lord, risk of flooding, salvation, Satan is all about deceit and greed, Satan's machinations, satisfying the thirsty earth, second wind day, seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, seek ye the Lord while he may be found, so glad to be alive, some we cannot even comprehend, thank God, the atoning lamb of God, the awesome help of Jesus, the BIBLE, the breath of life, the breath of life is still flowing through me, the cross at Calvary, the embodiment of all we can ask for or imagine, the good life, the King of Kings, the Lily of the Valley, the Lion of Judah, the Lord is Sovereign over the earth, the Lord of lords, the material things of the world, the rains fell, the resurrection and the life, the Son of God, the thief comes only to steal kill and destroy, the unrighteous man his thoughts, the Way Maker, the way the truth and the life, thieves break through and steal, thieves do not break through and steal, to a glorious future with Jesus, truth, unwise decisions, we can handle whatever comes against us, Wednesday Wail, where moth and rust doth corrupt, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, where your treasure is there will be your heart also, wisdom, wisdom to the nth degree
Isaiah 55:6. Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.
And the rains fell; from early evening through the night, until the morning hours, finally satisfying the parched and thirsty earth! Thankfully though, it was not an onslaught of powerful showers but mostly a constant drizzle, which greatly reduced the risk of flooding. Understandably then, Wednesday, our second wind day has opened damp, cloudy and cool, and we possibly ought to brace ourselves for more rain because that warning just showed up on the computer. But let’s remember that whatever comes against us, we can certainly handle it with Jesus’ awesome help! And all God’s children said a loud and grateful: ‘Thank You Jesus! You’re the Best!’
And that’s the awesome truth! For there’s none like Jesus! He’s the Son of God, and is thus godly, gracious, forgiving, merciful, the atoning lamb of God, the Way Maker, the Lion of Judah, the Way, the Life and the Truth, the Light of the World, the King of Kings, Lord of Lords, the Lily of the Valley, the Resurrection and the Life, and a host of other names which it would take the whole day to list. (smile) But seriously though, Jesus is the embodiment of all that we can ever ask for or imagine…and even then some that we cannot even comprehend with our finite minds.
As the prophet Isaiah writes: ‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.’ (Is. 55:8-9) That’s why we cannot understand a lot of what the Lord does, or is doing, both in our own lives and in the world. We know that He still sits as Sovereign of the world, but some of the stuff that He allows to happen when He can either prevent them or stop them just boggles our imagination.
However, the Lord has His own plans for the world He created and still rules, while giving us free will to make independent choices. He did not make robots, but human beings with minds that they could use to do what’s right or wrong, but must be prepared to suffer the consequences of each decision. And that’s exactly where we’re falling down. We rush to live like the world, like Satan desires, but when the negative consequences of those unwise decisions come rushing up against us, we hold our heads and bawl, saying, ‘if only, if only I’d thought about it before doing it.’
But then it’s usually too late my people, and unfortunately our decisions end up hurting not only ourselves but a lot of others around us. And that’s the really sad part about us making unwise decisions; it never hurts us alone, but other innocent ones in our proximity. That’s why Uncle Charles (Dr. Charles Stanley) always admonished us to obey God and leave all the consequences to Him. For when we do as God desires, the consequences are usually good, and if not, then he will certainly help us to handle them.
But Satan doesn’t help us to handle the bad consequences we suffer when we follow him. Not at all. He just sits back and laughs at us and considers us stupid to be following him, when all that ever comes from his machinations are negative consequences. And that’s why the prophet Isaiah, when informing Israel of God’s abundant pardons, declared: ‘Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.’ (Is. 55:6-7)
Yes friends, that’s an international call to all people, to both Jews and Gentiles, to come to the Lord for salvation, for forgiveness and the good life throughout eternity. And He certainly made it all possible by the unselfish but heartbreaking offering of His only begotten Son Jesus as a sacrifice, the Lamb of God, on the cross at Calvary. I don’t know why we keep forgetting that God is generous and merciful, forgiving and compassionate, while Satan is all about deceit, greed, and taking whatever you have and getting you into trouble with God.
It’s as Jesus so eloquently and truthfully puts it: ‘The thief (Satan) cometh not, but for (except) to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.’ (John 10:10) And I don’t understand why we cannot believe that and make it a part of our lives because it’s the absolute truth. All Satan wants to do is to destroy, to break down, to bring people down to damnation and hellfire with him, while Jesus wants to build, to give life, eternal life to all who are wise enough to embrace Him and what He stands for.
So, again, I don’t know why we’re so adamant at following Satan, killing ourselves to get the material things of the world, and then we don’t even have time to enjoy them. Remember the same material things Satan tempts us with, are the same material things we can get from God if we do as Jesus says: ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:33) And believe me, if you get these things from God, rather than through Satan’s evil machinations, you will enjoy them more and they will last longer.
But it’s all about wisdom and where your hearts truly lie. For as Jesus wisely say in the Sermon on the Mount: ‘Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt (ruin), and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt (ruin), and where thieves do not break through nor steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.’ (Matt. 6:19-21) And that’s the gospel truth friends! So please, let’s stop concentrating on storing up earthly treasures and wisely decide to store up heavenly ones instead nuh! For that’s wisdom to the nth degree!
Now let’s go home declaring our Wednesday Wail letting the whole world know of our wonderful position in Christ Jesus. As one strong and sincere voice: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’
Now there’s an addendum to that declaration which states, whoever endures to the very end with Jesus will enjoy an even more glorious future than we can ever comprehend or imagine. So let’s plan to meet at the very end and enjoy that more than glorious future together nuh! Much LOVE!
…why is the human being more enamoured with evil…than with good…when he was created by God…for good…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
22 Mar 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a good omen, a more rewarding prayer, bask in the light of Jesus, be filled with their own devices, be quiet from fear of evil, Bible, call upon him while he is near, call upon me, call upon meI will not answer, christianity, Christians, deepen my breath, disdained all my counsel., distress and anguish come upon you, double-minded attitude, eat the fruit of their own way, faith, fighting a valiant battle, fools hate knowledge, God will abundantly pardon, he will have mercy upon him, holy spirit, how long ye simple ones, I have called and ye refused, I love them that love me, I may know you all the more, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, I want to be with you now, I will hearken unto you, I will not answer, I will pour out my spirit unto you, in all sincerity and truth, in the opening of the gates, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus Christ, laugh at your calamity, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, let him return unto the Lord, let the wicked forsake his way, LOVE, make known my words unto you, mercy, mock when your fear comes, naivety, no man regarded, pray unto me, pros and cons, quiet my soul, relax my muscles, run to the rock for rescue, salvation, seek me and find me, seek me diligently, seek ye the Lord while he may be found, seeking sincere intimacy with God, seriously contemplate the consequences of each decision, she raises her voice in the streets, slow my thoughts, stretched out my hand, thank you for this tenderness, the complacency of fools, the foes of darkness, the morally dull, the scorners delight in scorning, the turning away of the simple, the unrighteous man his thoughts, those who seek me early will find me, truth, turn you at my reproof, undivided attention, waywardness, when terror comes as desolation, whoso hearkens to me shall dwell safely, will ye love simplicity, wisdom, wisdom calls aloud in the streets, wisdom crieth without, ye shall search for me with all your heart, you are here with me, you can't be contained, your destruction comes as a whirlwind, your love surrounds and fills me
Proverbs 8:117. I LOVE them that LOVE me; and those that seek me early (diligently) shall find me.
And it’s another lazy-day Saturday friends, but a windy, chilly and cloudy one, until a short while ago, around mid-day, when the sun, fighting a valiant battle, finally overcame the clouds and shone forth in all its bright and manly presence. (smile) Now that’s a good omen for us believers in Christ Jesus, reassuring us that if we stand strong and fight the foes of darkness, we too can overcome and bask in the glorious light of Jesus!
And with that reassurance under our belt, let’s offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer with all sincerity and truth. As one strong 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 there isn’t a more rewarding prayer than one seeking sincere intimacy with our heavenly Father, for that’s one of His heart’s greatest desires. It warms the cockles of His heart when we come sincerely seeking Him. That’s why there are several scriptures in God’s Word that specifically speak about seeking Him. Let’s check out a few of them nuh, like this one from Isaiah, where He writes: ‘Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.’ (Is. 55:6-7)
Right there my people, we see the wisdom of seeking God; He’ll pardon and have mercy on all who seek Him. But there’s one important proviso, as stated in this scripture from Jeremiah that we all know, where he declares: ‘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 your whole heart.’ (Jer. 29:12-13) Yes friends, there is a necessity to seeking God sincerely, or with all of your soul, body, mind and heart if you want to find Him.
Meanwhile Cousin Sol who has something to say on every subject, (smile) says it thus in Proverbs: ‘I LOVE them that LOVE me; and those that seek me early (diligently) shall find me.’ (Prov. 8:17) There again, more sincere and whole hearted seeking of God is necessary to find Him. We just can’t go with any wishy-washy, double-minded attitude and find Him. No! It must be with all of our being! And Cousin Sol further intimates that we must seek God as though we’re seeking for silver or gold, for hidden treasure; that’s with total undivided attention, putting all we have into it. (Prov. 2:4)
So, now that we have heard all about the benefits of sincerely seeking the Lord, let’s look at what happens if we don’t seek Him. And Cousin Sol puts it right out there when he talks in the beginning of Proverbs about ‘Wisdom Cries in the Streets.’ The scholars explain that He personifies her as a prophetess calling out in public places to everyone to come to her and learn.
He writes: ‘Wisdom crieth without (calls aloud in the street); she uttereth (raises) her voice in the streets (plazas). She crieth in the chief place of concourse (concourses), in the opening of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying, How long, ye simple (naïve) ones, will ye LOVE simplicity (naivety)? And the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?’ (Prov. 1:20-22) Now those are very good questions my brethren, questions that many of us need to seriously consider today, since our world is currently so full of exactly what Cousin Sol’s talking about; naivety or lack of knowledge, the scorning of scoffers, hatred of wisdom by fools or the morally dull.
But then we have this graceful invitation that was also turned down. ‘Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you. Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; But ye have set at nought (disdained) all my counsel, and would (have) none of my reproof:’ (Prov. 1:23-25) Yes friends, that’s exactly what too many of us have done; rejected God and His awesome help, and what our foolish and mentally disturbed world is adamantly continuing to do.
But hear what’s in the works for such of us nuh! ‘I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear (terror) cometh; When your fear (terror) cometh as desolation (a storm), and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you.’ (Prov. 1:26-27) Now is that what we truly desire? I doubt it. And the story is not yet finished.
Listen up: ‘Then they shall call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early (diligently), but they shall not find me: For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear (reverence) of the Lord: They would (have) none of my counsel: they despised all of my reproof. Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices. For the turning away (waywardness) of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity (complacency) of fools shall destroy them. But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet (be secure or at ease) from fear of evil.’ (Prov. 1:28-33)
There you have it my fellow believers, the pros and cons for seeking God diligently and with our whole being, and also being foolish and rejecting Him. Now, it’s up to each of us to choose the path we shall tread, but first, please let’s very seriously contemplate the consequences of each decision! Much LOVE!
…the time to sincerely seek God is…NOW…for as the old song says…if you wait too late…when you run to the Rock for rescue…there’ll be no rock…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
19 Oct 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: all that call upon him in truth, at thy right hand, be content with what you have, call upon him while he is near, faith, found grace in thy sight, God faithfully keeps all His promises, have mercy upon him, holy spirit, I may know you all the more, I will give thee rest, I will hearken unto you, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee, in thy presence is fullness of joy, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus Christ, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, let the wicked forsake his way, lo I am with you always, LOVE, mercy, my presence shall go with thee, our God will abundantly pardon, pleasures for evermore, pray into me, quiet my soul, relax my musclesslow my thoughts, return unto the Lord, search for me with all your heart, seek me and find me, seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, seek ye the Lord while he may be found, seeking God's presence, seeking intimacy with God, show me now thy way, show me the path of life, slow my thoguhts, thank you for this tenderness, that I may know thee, The Lord is nigh unto all that call upon him, the purpose of life, the unrighteous man his thoughts, truth, warms the cockles of God's heart, wisdom, your peace and love are present
Psalm 145:18. The Lord is nigh (near) unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.
Oh, how wonderful it is to wake up to a nice sunshiny and warm lazy-day Saturday! Just the thought of not having to get up early and rush off to work is oh so comforting. And being able to simply loll around in bed or on the couch or wherever you choose, just makes it all the nicer. And I did enjoy some of that lazy-day Saturday bliss, but unfortunately, for some of us the bliss cannot last all day, as we have God’s work to do. So here we are writing the Bit. (smile) And our first activity is to offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer with all sincerity and truth. Please pray with me:
‘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 by the time we’ve finished the prayer, we can feel our spirits lightened and calmed through God’s awesome presence, because that is one prayer the Lord always rushes to answer. There is nothing that warms the cockles of His heart more than us sincerely seeking His presence and greater intimacy with Him. And doing that is so important, that the Bible contains many scriptures which encourage us to seek the Lord’s presence.
So let’s look at a few of them today nuh, starting with this wonderful wake up call from Isaiah, where he advises his people Israel thus: ‘Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.’ (Is. 55:6-7)
Now friends, that’s exactly what so many of us in this ungodly and sinful world need to do; return to God, seek Him sincerely so that He can pardon us, and make our lives so much better than they currently are. Meanwhile in Psalm 16 – God Preserves His People, Bruh David poignantly writes: ‘Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand are pleasures for evermore.’ (Ps. 16:11)
And there’s no denying that my fellow believers! In God’s awesome presence there’s abundant joy, and that joy rises up, simply because we know that He will take care of us. As the author of Hebrews so assuredly tells us: ‘Let your conversation (conduct) be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he (God) hath said I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.’ (Heb. 13:5) And we know that our faithful God keeps all His promises. So there’s no need to worry when we’re in His presence.
There’s also this interesting prayer from Moses for God’s presence to go with him and the children of Israel on their journey to the Promised Land. He offered up to God: ‘Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found grace in thy sight, show 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 (God) said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest. And he (Moses) said unto Him (God), If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence.’ (Ex. 33:13-15)
Oh friends, yuh see how important God’s presence was to Moses, that if He wasn’t going to be with them along the way, he’d prefer to stay right where he was. And that’s exactly how important God’s presence ought to be in each believer’s life! If He’s not with us, then we’re not moving from where ever we are!
Then there are these encouraging words from the sons of Korah in Psalm 46: God is our Refuge and Strength. ‘Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.’ (Ps. 46:10-11) And until we truly believe that my brethren, we will never be able to fully enter into the Lord’s presence, we will always feel as though we’re on the outside looking in at a joyful scene.
And we all know these words of assurance from Jeremiah to the Israelites re their captivity in Babylon. After seventy years the Lord would cause them to return to their homeland ‘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 search for me with all your heart.’ (Jer. 29:11-13)
That’s it friends, our God only has good thoughts toward us, but we have to seek Him sincerely and be obedient to His will, if we desire to get into the fullness of His presence. And that is totally borne out by these words of Bruh David from Psalm 145 – God’s Unsearchable Greatness. ‘The Lord is nigh (near) unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth. He will fulfill the desire of them that fear (reverence) him: he will also hear their cry, and will save them.’ (Ps. 145:18-19)
Oh my fellow saints, it could not be more explicit than that…except possibly with these words of Jesus. ‘Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things (that you need) shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:33) That’s another faithful promise. But we’ll close with this marvellous and soul strengthening promise from Jesus at the end of the Great Commission. He left the disciples, and consequently all future believers, with these simple but oh so true words: ‘and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt. 28:20b)
Now if that doesn’t hit you right in the heart, then I don’t know what will! But it’s ever so important that we believe that Jesus is always with is, through the Holy Spirit, and is doing His best to lead us along the straight and narrow way that ends in eternal life at His side. Much LOVE!
… if we’re not in God’s presence…then we’re missing the whole purpose of life…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
03 May 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a new crop of believers, a word to the wise is sufficent, abundantly pardon, as the rain waters the earth, backsliders, Bible, bread to the eater, call ye upon him while he is near, christianity, crying out for help, destroy the earth, divine aid, error of their ways, faith, foolish pride, free choice, Friday chant, give seed to the sower, god, good examples of godly living, great sinfulness, have mercy upon him, in the thing which I sent it, it shall accomplish that which I please, it shall prosper, Jesus, Jesus Christ, let the wicked forsake his way, LOVE, mercy, my thoughts are not your thoughts, my thoughts higher than your thoughts, my ways higher than your ways, my word shall not return void, mysterious ways, neither are your ways my ways, only lasts for a short time, our sinful world, payback is hell, puny minds, return unto the Lord, salvation, season of rebellion, seek ye the Lord while he may be found, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the example we faithful believers set, the heavens are higher than the earth, the pleasures of righteousness, the pleasures of sin, the snow from heaven, the sweetness of sin, the throne of grace, the unrighteous man his thoughts, truth, ungodly ways, wake up and and smell the coffee, wisdom
Isaiah 55:6. Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
And this Friday morning in early May, as we shout ‘TGIF! Thank God It’s Friday!’ we celebrate the rebirth of the flora around us. Yes friends, spring has finally shown it’s green and wonderful face after such a long absence. And what amazes me, is that a couple days ago, trees that had no leaves, merely some brown buds, today are overflowing with greenery. But that’s how the awesome plan of God for the smooth running of the universe works; in mysterious ways that our finite and puny minds can never grasp or fully understand.
That ought to remind us of these magnificent and oh so true words of the Lord, spoken through the prophet Isaiah, informing the Israelites, and us too, that God abundantly pardons. ‘Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.’ (Is. 55:6-7)
Ah mih people, that call which was issued to the Israelites in their season of rebellion and sinfulness so many years ago, is again being issued to us in our great sinfulness and ungodly ways, for few, if any other generations have been more wicked and ungodly than ours is today. And we badly need to seek the Lord for His mercy and pardon if we expect to survive for any length of time on this earth, because as we continue in our sinful and ungodly ways we keep destroying God’s planet as well as ourselves. And if we play the scenario out to its complete fulfillment then we’ll simply destroy the earth and all therein.
That’s the foolish and arrogant plan we’re following right now. And the only way to put a stop to it, is to turn back to the God of our forefathers, who created and still controls the universe. And these further words of Isaiah ought to wake us up to reality, help us take our foolish heads from the sand in which it’s so thoroughly buried that we don’t know right from wrong, or whether we’re coming or going.
Listen up: ‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts higher than your thoughts. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void (empty, without fruit), but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing which whereto I sent it.’ (Is. 55:8-11)
Oh friends, we certainly cannot deny the truth of those statements! The Lord’s ways and thoughts are certainly higher than ours. His omnipotence, omniscience and omnipresence far outweighs what little power and understanding we possess, and we cannot begin to understand His person and purposes. That’s why He is God and we are simply His creation! Although in our foolish pride we ofttimes behave as though it’s the opposite way, and we end up paying a hefty price for that unwise thinking. But unfortunately the high price of disobedience doesn’t stop us from being rebellious and ungodly.
Let’s remember that our gift from God of free choice was not meant to choose the ungodly things of Satan, but the everlasting and wonderful things of God. But as always, mankind has abused that gift, turning more to the pleasures of sin advocated by Satan, than the pleasures of righteousness advocated by God. And that’s why our world is in such a mess right now, with strife and all the negative emotions of the evil one overwhelming our world.
But here’s what the Lord promised the Israelites if they turned back to Him. ‘For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall calp their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up a fir (cypress) tree, and instead of the brier (thorny plant) shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.’ (Is. 55:12-13)
Now doesn’t that scenario sound so much better than the one in which we’re currently enveloped? It surely does! So why don’t we turn from our evil ways, embrace the righteousness of God and make it come to pass eh? Remember, the sweetness of sin only lasts for a short while, then comes the payback. And payback is …hell! And that’s exactly what we’re suffering right now here on earth. Remember God’s Word will not be spoken in vain. Whatever it’s sent out to do, it will accomplish. And He sent it out in the first place promising salvation to all mankind, which has been accomplished by the work and sacrifice of Jesus.
So please, let’s get smart nuh, use the wisdom that God gave us and turn back to Him while He can still be found. And to help us do that, let’s go to the throne of grace through the prayer of our Friday Chant, seeking the help we so desperately need in these evil and ungodly times. Altogether now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help.
Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times. We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you.
Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
Now friends, there’s an interesting proviso to receiving divine help…we must first show that we’re turning from our evil ways and being good examples of godly living. That’s what drives divine help! Much LOVE!
..a word to the wise is sufficient…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
19 Feb 2023
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a future and a hope, anointed me to preach the gospel, beautiful believers in Christ, brotherly fellowship, call upon him while he is near, can't find your direction, courage fails, dreams are broken in the dust, face the overwhelming world, forgiveness, God's way or the Highway, grace, Grace and Gratitude, he will have mercy upon him, heal the brokenhearted, I know the thoughts that I think toward you, Let Go-and Let God, let the signs remind you to surrender, let the wicked forsake his way, lost the will to trust, LOVE, mercy, Olivia Newton John, praise, preach deliverance to the captives, preach the acceptable year of the Lord, recovery of sight to the blind, repentance, return unto the Lord, sacrifical praise, seek ye the Lord while he may be found, thanksgiving, the day of the Lord, the Spirit of the Lord is upon me, the unrighteous man his thoughts, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you an expected end, with vim and vigour, your heart won't guide you home
Jeremiah 29:11. 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).
Well hello there you beautiful believers in Christ Jesus! As you’ve probably guessed, (smile) it’s that blessed day again, Sunday, the day of our Lord God Jehovah! That means it’s time once more to gather in brotherly fellowship and celebrate with worship, praise and thanksgiving, Jehovah’s amazing, unconditional LOVE and mighty deeds to His children!
And there’s no better time in the lives of believers than when they gather to honour and acclaim our wonderful Creator, for then our faith, hope and dreams are revitalized and our confidence in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is renewed, and we can go out and face the evil world with overwhelming vim and vigour, letting the unbelieving world know that Christ is the answer: the answer to all of life’s questions!
And today’s song is a gentle reminder to all of us, of where to turn when the problems of life get us down, and our faith is somewhat on the low side. It’s a song by the late Olivia Newton-John titled ‘Let Go – And Let God,’ from her album ‘Grace and Gratitude,’ something we ought to have a lot of because of the awesome grace we receive from God. So, let’s offer up our sacrificial praise this morning in an easy, soulful, heartfelt version of the song.
Singing: ‘When you can’t find your direction, and your heart won’t guide you home – Let go – and let God. When your dreams are broken in the dust, and you’ve lost the will to trust – Let go – and let God. (Chorus: Let the signs remind you, we are passengers. Let the signs remind you to surrender, to surrender – Let go- and let God. (Background vocals – When you’re holding in, when you’re holding in, when you’re holding in, when you’re holding in.) When your faith is a dying fire, and there’s no spark to feed the flame – Let go – and let God. When your courage fails you, and the well of hope runs dry – Let go – and let God.
(Chorus: Let the signs remind you, we are passengers. Let the signs remind you to surrender, to surrender – Let go- and let God. (Background vocals – When you’re holding in, when you’re holding in, when you’re holding in, when you’re holding in.) Let the signs remind you -to surrender, to surrender, to Let go – and let God, let go- and let God’
Oh my fellow saints, those five words – ‘Let go – and let God,’ are ever so important in lives. In fact, they are very crucial and critical, because we cannot access God’s goodness and mercy unless we let go, unless we surrender our will to His! That’s the only way He can help us. The problem though is that too many of us want to hold on to our will and also have God’s grace and mercy. But unfortunately my brethren, it doesn’t work that way. God has specified many times in the scriptures that it’s either His way or the highway!
Remember how the prophet Isaiah stated it, when reminding his people, Israel, that God abundantly pardons. He said: ‘Seek ye the Lord while he may be found. Call upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.’ (Is. 55:6-9)
That puts the whole thing in its proper perspective my people. God calls the shots, not us! He is the Creator, and we are simply the created. And if we know our place, then He will overwhelm us with His goodness and grace, as He said through the prophet 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).’ (Jer. 29:11)
That’s the second aspect of the situation; God has wonderful plans in store for us, if we will only listen and follow His will. But the truly marvellous and awesome thing about our God is that He forgives, and doesn’t ever turn anyone away. So even if we are bent on doing it our way and encounter problems, if we turn to Him, surrender our will to His, He will enable us to keep on keeping on.
As the song says, let the signs remind us that we are only passengers, and instead of holding in our doubts, fears, anxieties and whatever negative stuff that’s baffling us, to surrender, to let go and let God handle it, for He is omnipotent, omniscient and omni-present, which means He can handle any and everything! And it’s sad, because God gave us free will, hoping that we would be wise enough to walk this life with Him. However, we’ve taken that free will and abused it, foolishly thinking we could do it all on our own.
But that’s impossible, because God made us so that we can only live this life successfully with Him as our guide and enabler. And it’s because we don’t walk in His light that we get lost, lose our direction and our courage, while our faith withers, as our dreams lie broken in the dust, our well of hope runs dry and we can’t find a spark to feed the flames of our passion.
And Jesus said it all, when He read from the Book of Isaiah on the Sabbath Day in His hometown of Nazareth. ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised (oppressed), To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.’ (Luke 4:18-19)
Now that’s what our wonderful God is all about through His Son Jesus! That’s why He allowed Him to be crucified on the cross of Calvary; so that the lost could be found, the blind given sight, those living in darkness, light, those without hope, strong faith, those bound in the captivity of sin, freedom and eternal life. But we must surrender to God’s will, let Him fill that empty space in our souls that He’s reserved especially for Himself, that ONLY He can fill.
Please realize friends, that God didn’t create us on a whim and a fancy, but on a well thought out plan, that took everything that could possibly happen into account. So He’s not surprised when we get lost and go astray, because He’s already planned for that eventuality; for all eventualities. But the ball is still in our court, we must play our part before He can play His. Much LOVE!
… surrender and repentance must be made…before forgiveness and grace are offered…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
27 Jan 2023
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a frightful stench, a marvellous solution to our sinful souls, an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off, anxiety, as the heavens are higher than the earth, be obedient to god's will, bread to the eater, call upon him while he is near, confusion, defeat the simmering unrest in our land, Friday chant, give seed to the sower, god is still on his throne, God's provided the way to salvation, he will abundantly pardon, he will have mercy upon him, in the thing whereunto I sent it, instead of the brier the myrtle tree, instead of the thorn shall come up the fir, introduce a new flock of believers, it shall accomplish that which I please, it shall not return void, it shall prosper, keep our promises, let the wicked forsake his way, LOVE, my thoughts are higher than your thoughts, my thoughts are not your thoughts, my ways are higher that your ways, my ways are not your ways, omnipotent help, pandemic, reconciled to the Father, return backsliders to your fold, salvation to all mankind, seek ye the Lord while he may be found, stand strong and steadfast, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the error of their ways, the Lord is still in control, the righteousness of Christ, the unrighteous man his thoughts, trusting faith, wake up and and smell the coffee
Isaiah 55:6. Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near:
And there’s some sunshine shining on the cold white snow in a cloudy background, which my computer terms as haze. (smile) Yes friends, on this last Friday in January 2023, we declare ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!‘ in a cold and hazy atmosphere. The important thing though is that our great and wonderful God, Jehovah is still on His heavenly throne, still in control of all earthly movements, although we might not think so.
And yes, He does give us a lot of leeway to do as we please, but let’s never forget His sage, incisive and sharp-edged words, spoken through His prophet Isaiah. ‘Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.’ (Is. 55:6-7)
And in these evil and ungodly times, do we ever need to return to Almighty God and be pardoned, for the sinful attributes in our world are overwhelming, reaching up to high heaven with a frightful stench that totally boggles the imagination. And those sage and rather incisive words of God continue: ‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.’ (Is. 55:8-9)
Oh my fellow believers, the Lord might give us free will to do and act as we please, but we are never out of His sight nor His thoughts because He is omniscient and omnipresent and will only allow us to get away with so much wrongdoing, while constantly calling us to righteousness. And I don’t understand why we so adamantly refuse His call to godliness and righteousness, especially when He’s made such great provision for us.
Listen to his words again nuh. ‘For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it to bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void (empty, without fruit), but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.’ (Is. 55:10-11)
Yuh hear that friends? Our God is purposely telling us that whatever He sends out His word to accomplish, will be accomplished, and in the exact manner that He desires. Now doesn’t that make us concerned about our culture and lifestyle, our disobedience and ungodliness? It ought to, because His word contains so many promises of the wicked and sinful being destroyed, of being punished in the fires of hell. That ought to make us sit up and take serious notice of His holy and truthful word, and turn to Him, though somewhat belatedly, for the abundant pardon that He holds out to all who come to Him in sincere repentance.
And listen to this magnificent promise of our great and ever-faithful God to those who avidly and sincerely Him. ‘For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir (cypress) tree, and instead of the brier (plant with a thorny and prickly stem) shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.’ (Is. 55:12-13)
Wow mih bredrin! What a magnificent promise! Our God includes us in the everlasting covenant He’s given to his chosen people, Israel. And are we going to refuse it for foolish and prideful self-interest? The scholars tell us that God’s ‘invitation to all men is clearly stated in the appeal, Seek ye the Lord and call ye upon him.’
They also inform us that ‘God’s sovereignty and omniscience are extolled by the statements that His thoughts (i.e. purposes or intentions) and ways (directions) are higher than ours. While God may certainly be known by men, He is still incomprehensible in the totality of His person and purposes. Therefore He reveals Himself to men by His word, which shall not return to Him void (empty, in vain). The Word of God, therefore accomplishes His purpose in announcing salvation to all mankind.’
And He’s kept His word by sending His sinless Son, Jesus Christ to die for us on Calvary’s cross, so that our sins can be forgiven, and we be made the righteousness of Christ, be reconciled to our Creator and no longer bear the mark of Satan, but of Christ, and no longer bound for hell fire and damnation, but for the beautiful and peaceful halls of heaven. Now, we would be everlastingly foolish to reject such a marvellous solution to our sinful souls.
So please, I implore us to day to get serious about Jesus and His amazing way of life. Though it’s not easy and ofttimes sacrificial, it is ALWAYS interesting and adventurous and leads to untold treasures and rewards in heaven that last forever, unlike the earthly treasures we run down, that soon decay and are of no further use. Therefore, in faith, hope and wisdom, through our Friday Chant, let’s go to the throne of God in sincere prayer and ask for His divine help.
As one confident but humble voice: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… what with all the confusion and anxiety caused by the pandemic and our many other serious problems. We can’t fix them on our own Lord, so we desperately need your help.
Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. So Lord, we sincerely ask you today to give those involved in the forefront of this serious and unexpected storm, the wise guidance to handle the situation properly, without further serious setbacks. And please help those of us who must go out to work amidst all the confusion, to be responsible and to stay safe.
And Lord, we fervently pray that You’ll use this situation to return backsliders to your fold, show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. Yes Lord, please use this pandemic, the bubbling discontent and dissatisfaction in our land, as a means of restoring faith in You, so that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
And as always, if we sincerely desire to receive positive answers from our omnipotent God, we need to keep our promises and be obedient to His holy will. Much LOVE!
…God’s provided the way to salvation…it’s up to us…to accept or reject it…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
20 Oct 2022
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: all tongues confess, an everlasting covenant, both thou and thy seed shall live, buy wine and milk without money, choose life, comapssionate heart, come unto me all ye that labour, come ye buy and eat, come ye to the waters, curse, every one that thirsteth, God commendeth his own love toward us, God's free gift of salvation, great invitation, I am meek and lowly in heart, I have set before you life and death, I will give you rest, King of Kings, let your soul delight itself in fatness, Lord of Lords, my yoke is easy and my burden light, negative word, prince of peace, seek ye the Lord while he may be found, self-control, self-discipline, storms of life, take my yoke upon you, that Jesus Christ is Lord, the deceiver of God's people, the name above every other name, the wages of sin is death, this is the day the Lord has made, Thursday Blessings, to the glory of God the Father, to whom all knees must bow, we will rejoice and be glad in it, while we were yet sinners christ died for us, you reap what you sow
Isaiah 55:6. Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near.
And the week’s moving along as programmed. Thursday has opened cloudy and windy in my neck of the woods, but it’s still a wonderful day to be alive! It just means being prepared for the weather when we go out; dress for it and be careful walking or driving. However, for true believers in Jesus Christ, every day we open our eyes is a marvellous day, despite the weather, and one we should all greet by declaring (yesss!!!) these awesome words of the psalmist. ‘This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.’ (Ps. 118:24)
Yes friends, we ought to be grateful for each day we awaken and don’t see our names listed in the obits, (smile) even when the mighty storms of life, both literally and figuratively are pounding upon us, and we don’t know what to do. But that’s okay too, because we know someone who knows what to do, how to handle both the literal and figurative storms, His name is Jesus Christ; the Saviour of this sinful world, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the Prince of Peace, the High Priest in the heavens, the Mighty Advocate for those who believe in Him and sincerely surrender their souls to Him; the name that’s above every other name, the one to whom ALL knees must bow and confess that he is Lord to the glory of God the Father!
Wow! What a powerful and influential person to know! And unlike most powerful and influential persons down here on earth, Jesus Christ doesn’t play favourites, or turn away anybody who desires to come to Him, regardless of their troubles, physical or spiritual status. In fact, He welcomes ALL and sundry through His Great Invitation. But before we get to that new invitation (smile) listen to this other Great Invitation that our Lord God Jehovah offered His people Israel through the prophet Isaiah, long before Jesus offered His.
Isaiah gracefully declared (awright!!!) on the Lord’s behalf: ‘Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? Hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness (abundance). Incline your ear and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David… Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near.’ (Is. 55:1-3, 6)
Oh my people, yuh see how our great God was generous from the outset? As the scholars tell us, ‘God’s free gift of salvation is offered to ALL who will receive it. Those who are hungry and thirsty may come and drink without money (freely). He promises an everlasting covenant to the Gentiles (vs. 5) like the one He established with Israel. His invitation to ALL men is clearly stated by the appeal, Seek ye the Lord and call ye upon him.’
Yes my fellow believers, from the very beginning God has been pleading with us to come to Him for succour and nourishment for our souls. But sadly, we have been forestalling Him with excuses, lies and deceptions cast upon us by our enemy Satan, the devourer and deceiver of God’s people. However, as we can see God didn’t give up on us – He NEVER does – and with a heart full of LOVE, sent His Son Jesus Christ to earth to save us, by paying for our sins with His sinless blood that was shed on the cross of Calvary.
So I don’t know how we can ever say that God doesn’t care for us. And Bruh Paul declares it (yesss!!!) thus in his missive to the church at Rome. ‘But God commendeth (demonstrates) his (own) LOVE toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.’ (Rom. 5:8) Please note my people, that the Lord didn’t wait for us to change our evil ways and come to Him, He came to us first, with salvation, through His glorious Son Jesus Christ.
And Jesus, in His turn, also offered us another Great Invitation, where He pleads with mankind: ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (from) me; for I am meek and lowly in heart (gentle and humble): and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt. 11:28-30) I don’t know how else Jesus could plead with us to come to Him nuh. And He did it all through His earthly ministry, but stubborn, unwise, mankind still refuses to believe Him and seek His comfort, peace and salvation that can be found in no one else in God’s great world.
But that li’l matter of free will keeps cropping up and we keep using it to fulfill our own selfish desires for the things of the world, leaving our souls totally open to be ravaged, plundered and then cast off into the fires of hell by the enemy. That’s certainly not wisdom, especially in a time like this when the whole world is in a negative uproar, one filled with strife, poverty, sickness, natural disasters and inequality of enormous proportions.
Oh, but we have free will, so we can do what we want. And what we want right now is to drive God out of our society. Hn! What a laugh! We are even more foolish than we seem, if we believe that God will ever allow Himself to be driven out of His own creation! But as Moses told the children of Israel a long time ago ‘I call heaven and earth to record (as witnesses) this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.’ (Deut. 30:19)
And just for your information my brethren, that declaration (oh yeah!!!) still stands to this day. So it’s up to you to choose spiritual life or death with your free will. But for those of us who have chosen life, the Lord has bestowed upon us a number of tools to do His awesome work. We call them our Thursday Blessings. So let’s declare them (wow! – that’s 5 times straight) so that they can be activated in our lives.
As one strong and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’
And now it’s our bounden duty to go out and put those tools to work in Christ’s name. Much LOVE!
…you reap what you sow…you can’t sow sin and expect to reap eternal life…for the wages of sin is death…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ
28 Dec 2021
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a state of upheaval, a taste of the good life, an everlasting sign, be led forth with peace, between good and evil, bickering over petty stuff, calamity, call ye upon him while he is near, climate change, disaster, go out with joy, God's Sovereignty, he will have mercy upon him, hurry, I am the beloved of god, in god's eyes, incomprehensible God, it shall accomplish that which I please, it shall not return void, Jesus is the life, let the wicked forsake his way, like hot bread from an oven, LOVE, my thoughts are higher than your thoughts, natural and human induced, New Year's celebrations, our God will abundantly pardon, pandemic, partisan poltics, racial tumult, resnetment, seek ye the Lord while he may be found, self-righteousness, selfishness, share His love with the world, so are my ways higher than yours, strife, the battle for supremacy, the call of the Grim Reaper, the journey of salvation, the way the truth and the light, the wisest choice of help, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, worry
Isaiah 55:6. Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.
And then it was Tuesday, and all the partying done for a few days, time to go back to work. But by Friday, the party scene going to start back up in full swing for the New Year’s celebrations. Don’t know how much we have to celebrate this year’s end nuh, with all the disaster and calamity that’s taken place, both natural and human induced. What’s there to celebrate when we can’t get together and solve even a few of our many problems, and some of them are very petty and simple to fix, but ignorance and selfishness and self-righteousness prevent us from doing anything to help our overall cause.
Steups! What can be more foolish eh, than a lack of cooperation when it only makes matters worse in all of our lives. And they call man the smartest of all God’s creations…Hn! I certainly question that after all the unwise and foolish stuff that I’ve seen mankind do in the last couple of years. The resentment, the strife, the enmity between family and friends over unbelievable stuff is unbelievable! Between partisan politics, the pandemic, racial tumult, climate change and a host of other problems, the world is in a state of upheaval that I don’t think it’s ever seen before.
When yuh hear we even want to kick Almighty God out of our society, foolishly thinking that we no longer have any need for Him, then you’ve heard it all! Because He is the ONLY ONE who can bring us together and solve our problems! But like so often before, once we get a taste of the good life, we start believing that it’s our doing, and so we get a tad too big for our britches, and the Lord has to bring us back to reality. Well mih bredrin, this is certainly a time of reality.
But yuh know what? Too many of us are still not waking up to it. Some of us are seeing it in rose-coloured glasses, while others are covered with darkness all round them, but unfortunately the reality is none of those scenarios. The reality is that Jesus is the light, the life, the way, the truth, the Lord and Saviour of this embattled world! And until more of us realize it, and decide to stop the foolish bickering over petty stuff, and sit down and talk seriously about the important things, the battle for supremacy between good and evil, between right and wrong will continue with neither side gaining any useful traction, much less being able to win!
And we go right back to the wise words of the prophet Isaiah, when he declared on the Lord’s behalf: ‘Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.’ (Is. 55:6) Oh my people, that would be the wisest decision we could ever make in this quickly deteriorating and sinking world of ours! And sincerely seeking the Lord is not the complete answer to the problem. Hear Isaiah put it all into proper perspective. ‘Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.’ ( Is. 55:7)
Now isn’t that so very encouraging, mih people? It certainly is, but we’re not paying attention, merely continuing in our stubborn, hard-headed ways, which unfortunately will only lead us further down the path to destruction. And if these next two verses don’t smarten us up, make us wake up and take notice, then I don’t know what will nuh. Listen up to Isaiah again, as he delivers the one two knockout punch. ‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.’ (Is. 55:8-9)
Doesn’t that just make you put your finger to your lips and go ‘Hnnnn!’ all lost in thought, as you consider the truth of those words? It ought to, because it is the reality of the situation. When are we going to learn that since we have no say in how long we live, or what condition we live in, means we are not rulers of the universe? All the money and power we possess doesn’t stop us from succumbing to the call of the Grim Reaper, whenever he calls.
And until we fully realize that we are just a created being with a limited shelf life, we will always fall prey to the deceit and lies of the foolish enemy Satan, who unfortunately thought that he could wrest power from the Creator of the universe, Almighty God, and suffered an ignominious defeat; that a humiliating, embarrassing, mortifying defeat! Disgracefully cast out to the fires of Hades, he is now seeking revenge by taunting and inducing fear into the lives and hearts of those who want to believe. And seeing that Satan had no power to stop himself from being kicked out of heaven, why do we foolishly believe his lies and deceits that he can do anything worthwhile for us eh?
Now let’s hope that these words of scripture make it clear, once and for all time, who is the King of glory, the Creator and Controller of this wonderful universe, so ruined by man and the devil. Isaiah puts it forth: ‘For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater; So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void (empty, without fruit), but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir (cypress) tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.’ (Is. 55:10-13)
Oh my people, can the evil one, the prince of darkness make such a faithful promise? Obviously not, because he doesn’t’ have that kind of power. But the Lord God Jehovah has, and He showed His faithfulness when two thousand years ago, he sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to earth to be sacrificed on the cross of Calvary to save our sinful souls. Now has Beelzebub ever done anything even close to that? And an emphatic ‘NO’ is the answer! So why do we still believe Him over the Lord God Almighty eh? I don’t know nuh.
But listen to the scholars’ explanation of those verses. ‘55:8-13. God’s sovereignty and omniscience are extolled by the statement that His thoughts (i.e. purposes or intentions) and ways (directions) are higher than ours. While God may certainly be known by men, He is still incomprehensible in the totality of His person and purposes. Therefore He reveals Himself to men by His word, which shall not return to Him void (in vain). The Word of God, therefore, accomplishes His purpose in announcing salvation to all mankind.’
Yes friends, we can never fully comprehend the Lord’s purposes and ways because of our inferior intelligence. But through His awesome and faithful Word, He lets us know what’s happening, and it’s in this Christmas season, with the birth of Christ that He began the journey of salvation, of bringing us back into His fold, making us know of His exceeding LOVE and tender care. Now if all of that doesn’t touch a tender spot in your heart and soul, and make you seriously consider seeking Him, then I don’t know what else to do. I can only tell it like I know it.
However, for those of us who already believe and are doing our best to stay connected to Jesus, let’s go home now, sincerely and loudly declaring (steupsss!!!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting everybody know to whom we belong, lock, stock and barrel. Altogether now: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
Now let’s take all that LOVE and friendship to market and sell it like hot bread from an oven! (smile) Share it with all we meet, for that’s Jesus’ desire. Much LOVE!
…the wisest choice of help…our Creator and Controller…who else eh…
P.S. I know it’s somewhat long and late, but I think it’s good, (smile) so please take it seriously. Much LOVE!
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8
03 Nov 2021
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: and without price, call upon him while he is near, come buy wine and milk without money, come ye buy and eat, come ye to the waters, divine mercy, divine strength, endure unto the end, every one that thirsteth, glory in my infirmities, God's free gift of salvation, grin and bear them, he that hath no money, hear and your soul shall live, human weakness, I am halfway home, I will make and everlasting covenant with you, I'm not turning back, I'm so glad to be alive, in distresses for Christ's sake, incline your ear and come unto me, let your soul delight itself in fatness, listen to Christ's Spirit, LOVE, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, my grace is sufficient for thee, my hands are on the plough, my heart is in the right place, my strength is made perfect in weakness, not for god's benefit but for ours, seek ye the Lord while he may be found, the breath of life, the clarion call of God, the light that Jesus shines in my soul, the Lord is a wonderful God, the loss of his soul, the most exorbitant price a human can pay, the work of God comes first, thus liable to make mistakes, to a glorious future with Jesus, Wednesday Wail, when I am weak then I am strong, your labour for that which satiasfieth not
Isaiah 55:6. Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near.
Another bright and sunshiny but windy and chilly day in my neighbourhood! And added to that is the brilliance of the light that Jesus shines in my soul! Wow! And yuh better believe I need them both right now, as I did one of those extra late nights and early mornings and the body is retaliating against me, crying out for sleep. But it has to learn that the work of God comes first, even though it’s my fault.
We must suffer and sacrifice when we make a mess of things. So here I am suffering and sacrificing this Wednesday morning, (smile) because I refused to listen to Christ’s Spirit and go to bed at a reasonable time, so that I could get up at a reasonable time, refreshed enough to do a respectable job for Him. But I’m not worried friends, the Lord is a wonderful God, and He will forgive and help me, because He knows that my heart is in the right place, and I’m only human, thus liable to make mistakes.
And furthermore, He will help me just so that I don’t write nonsense and spoil His business. (smile) Remember what He said after Bruh Paul asked three times to have the ‘thorn in his flesh’ removed, some unknown impediment placed there so he would not become too big for his britches, with all the revelations the Lord was giving him. ‘And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength (power) is made perfect in weakness.’ (2 Cor. 12:9 a) And that’s the promise I am counting on this morning! (smile) That His divine strength will show up and help me in my human weakness.
And remember too Bruh Paul’s reaction to that divine decree. ‘Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then I am strong.’ (2 Cor. 12:9b-10)
No my friends, I am nowhere near to Bruh Paul’s taking pleasures in all those negative things, but I have stopped asking to have all the aches and pains removed from my ole body, because I’ve had them long enough, and I’ve asked often enough, that if He was going to remove them, He would have done it already. So, I just do my best to grin and bear them, releasing my faith, that He will enable me to manage them. And so far I have been doing reasonably well, with His help of course.
Now that’s what I’ve been trying to say for so long my people: our God is a wonderful God! And though He will not put up with our shenanigans forever, and there will often be consequences to pay for them, He will help us if we come to Him with sincerity and repentance. Which other supposed deity has a free offer of mercy to all eh? None whatsoever!
Listen to Isaiah offer it on behalf of the Lord. ‘Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy and eat; yea, come buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness (abundance). Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David… Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near.’ (Is. 55:1-3, 6)
Oh my fellow saints, what joyful words of inspiration and comfort the Lord promised so long ago, and made come true in the fullness of time, with the advent and ministry of Jesus! And I like how the scholars explain it. ‘55:1-7. God’s free gift of salvation is offered to all who will receive it. Those who are spiritually hungry and thirsty may come to eat and drink without money (or freely). He promises an everlasting covenant to the Gentiles like the one He established with Israel. His invitation to al men is clearly stated by the appeal, Seek ye the Lord and call upon him.’
And yes, as faithful as always, the Lord made the covenant with the Gentiles through Jesus, where we also have the opportunity to come to Him for salvation, just like the Jewish people did. And friends, that clarion call of God’s, to seek Him while He can be found and to call upon Him when He is near is still in existence today. So please, please, let’s heed it nuh! It’s not for God’s benefit, but for ours! And it never ceases to amaze me when we turn up our noses in stubborn pride and foolishness at God’s wonderful offers, as though they were for His benefit.
Steups! We’ve gotten so big for our britches that we have conveniently forgotten who created the universe and who still owns and controls it – God Almighty! And we only exist because of His great LOVE and divine mercy. But one day it will all end. Yes, it will. God has promised it. And there again, we don’t ever seem to take His promises seriously, although they always come true. So, if He promises that one day, all those who don’t believe in Him will end up in hell fire with the foolish Satan, then why don’t we believe it eh?
But as they say, you can take a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink. The same way you can have the good news of Christ’s gospel explained to you, and there’s no guarantee that you will accept it and believe. However, there will come a day, when all those who have heard it, but not accepted or believed it, will pay the most exorbitant price possible for a human being; the loss of his soul. Remember, man can only kill the body, but the Lord can kill both body and soul, which He will do eventually, if you do not accept His son Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour. End of sermon!
Now, for those of us who sincerely believe, let’s go home declaring (steups!!!) our Wednesday Wail, letting all and sundry know of our wonderful position in Christ Jesus. Altogether now: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’
And lest we forget my brethren, if we endure unto the end, then that future will be even more glorious than we can ever ask or imagine! Much LOVE!
…if you sincerely seek God…and sincerely call on Him for help…He will sincerely help you…just like He sincerely did for me this morning… (smile)
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8
SCRIP-BITS 