04 Dec 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: alive and kicking butt, amidst all the confusion, avoid serious setbacks, behaving responsibly, between you and your God, bring forth iniquity, can wake up and smell the coffee, conceive mischief, Covid-19, divulge the contents of our hearts, doing my part, doublespeak, Friday Chnat, get on our sinful knees, how soon is soon eh, insincerity, look to God for relief, neither his ear heavy, no one to blame but ourselves, no work or money, none calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth, our sinful world, right motives, selfish motives, sincere hearts, sinfulness, speak lies, speak with forked tongues, stand strong and steadfast, staying in mih yard, talking about a vaccine coming soon, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, that he cannot hear, that he will not hear, the error of their ways, the fruits of our disobedience, the rich getting richer in this pandemic time, they trust in vanity, to lablache, what is the problem eh, your fingers with iniquity, your hands are defiled with blood, your iniquities have separated, your lips have spoken lies, your sins have hid his face from you, your tongue hath muttered perverseness
Isaiah 59:2. But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.
Well folks, we real late this snowy Friday morning. And if by chance yuh wondering why, it’s the same ole excuse; late to bed, late to rise. Hn! This morning was a real late one too. I won’t even tell you all what time I went to bed. (smile) But suffice it to say that I am now up, alive and kicking butt! So let’s turn right away to the words of the ordinary workingman, no time for me to ‘lablache’ this morning. (smile)
And he begins with a shake of his tired head and a sour ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday! But why eh? What ah thanking Him for eh? Ah don’t have no work, or money, and ah don’t know when next I going to have either of them because of this Covid-19 business! Steups! What ‘s happening to our country…and our world eh? Ah doing my part, behaving responsible and staying in mih yard and yet still the Covid-19 numbers not going down, but staying up. So what is the problem eh?
Like is just me and my family who being responsible, and everybody else just going about their business regardless? And to make it worse, ah not seeing any money coming from the government like I did before. So what they expect me to do eh? They shut down mih workplace, and begging me to stay home, how they expect me to feed mih children eh? We can’t exist on wind pie and nothing chops for ever! And they keep talking about a vaccine coming soon…but how soon is soon eh? When half the people dead?
Ah Lord eh! And every day ah hearing or reading how the rich getting richer in this pandemic time…Hn! Yuh believe it? But it must be true, otherwise they wouldn’t keep on saying it. Now why should that surprise me eh, when I know from long time that the rich don’t really give a darm about the poor, is only talk deh talk!
Deh not only rich, but they could talk a good talk too, till even the poor man believe what deh say. Deh great at doublespeak, or as the Indians use to say in the movies, they speak with forked tongues. But what to do eh? I guess I just have to keep on praying, looking to God for some kinda relief yes, because it don’t seem like any coming from man nuh!’
Now friends, that’s the most sensible idea right now yes. Look to God for relief. But let me read you a passage from Isaiah why that might be a somewhat difficult task too. It all has to do with national corruption and consequent suffering. Isaiah informed Israel thus: ‘Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.
For your hands are defiled with blood (bloodshed), and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness. None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity (empty words), and speak lies; they conceive mischief (trouble or evil), and bring forth iniquity.’ (Is. 59:1-4) And so it goes on – the sins of the people of Israel for another 15 verses.
And also our iniquity my brethren, for it’s our sinfulness that’s keeping us from God! We can’t expect to be abominable, unrepentant sinners and still receive God’s grace and mercy! It just doesn’t work like that. If we expect to have good times in our land, then we need to be obedient to God and His word. Worship Him in spirit and truth, not just talk.
Remember all the promises He made? Remember most of them depended on us being sincere and obedient? And there’s no way we can say that our current world is either obedient or true to God and His word. So obviously there are consequences to our disobedience and demonic worship, and right now we’re experiencing the fruits of our disobedience and outright, doh care sinfulness. So there’s no one to blame but ourselves.
However, our God is such a wonderful Deity that He has also made provision for us to turn from our sinful ways and be reconciled to Him. So what say we use wisdom this very day and turn to Him for succour eh? Let’s do what He says, pray in earnest, with right motives in our hearts. So what we waiting for eh? Let’s get on our sinful knees and divulge the contents of our hearts to Him, through our Friday Chant.
Altogether now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. Yuh know it’s been rough… what with all the anxiety, the confusion and havoc that the Covid-19 virus and the racial strife causing. We not accustomed to that kind of life Lord, and it really telling on us. And we know we can’t handle it on our own, that 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 both the virus and the unrest in our streets.
So Lord, we sincerely ask you today to give the governments and those involved in the forefront of this serious and unexpected storm, the sure and wise guidance to handle the situation properly, with the least amount of loss to life and property as possible. And please help those of us who must go out to work amidst all the confusion, to be responsible and to stay safe, so that we can avoid any more serious setbacks. And Lord, we fervently pray that You’ll use this situation to also bring a lot of backsliders back to your fold, show them the error of their ways.
It’s also a good opportunity to introduce a whole new flock, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion because of the way we, your faithful believers, handle the situation. Yes Lord, please use this pandemic and the unrest in the streets as a means of restoring faith in You, so that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
And I don’t need to remind us that the Lord won’t bother with us if, or when He looks at our hearts and found insincerity and selfish motives there. So we better had buck up and be faithful believers and handle the situation properly! Much LOVE!
…it won’t get better…until we get better…
27 Oct 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a living sacrifice, all day long, all things are become new, an ugly caterpillar to a beautiful butterfly, ask and it shall be given to you, awesome friendship, be not conformed to this world, be ye transformed, built for those who believe in Him, by the renewing of your mind, carnally minded, carry me over to the other side, dominated by righteousness, dominated by sin, each and every day, enmity against God, enter your spirit, give me Jesus, God works everything out for our good, he is a new creature, heaven, holy spirit, I am the beloved of god, I don't have to hurry, I don't have to worry, if any man be in Christ, in god's eyes, Jesus is the greatest gift, joy, keep me running smoothly, keep percolating there, life and peace, living after the flesh, living after the Spirit, LOVE, mind the things of God, mind the things of the flesh, no one can take that from me, not what I do, not what I have, not what people say about me, old things are passed away, our eternal home, our old sinful systems, peace, present your bodies, purring like a well-tuned engine, reinvigorate my soul, share His love with the world, sincere hearts, subject to the law of God, that good acceptable and perfect will of God, the carnal mind, the mercies of God, to be carnally minded is death, to be spiritually minded, to those wonderful mansions, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, until eternity, ye have not because ye ask not, ye may prove, you can have all of this fallen world
2 Corinthians 5:17. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (creation): old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
‘Give me Jesus… give I Jesus… You can have all of this fallen world…Just give I Jesus…’ Oh friends, I’m chuckling here because you know how a song can just enter your spirt and keep percolating there constantly? Well that’s how ‘Give me Jesus’ has been constantly percolating in my soul since we sang it last Sunday. And why shouldn’t it eh, since Jesus is the greatest gift we’ve ever been given, and the greatest request we can ever ask. Remember Jesus’ words: ‘Ask, and it shall be given you…’ (Matt. 7:7) And His brother James says: ‘yet ye have not, because ye ask not.’ (James 4:2b) Cause even when we ask, we ask for the wrong things, so we don’t get anything.
So yes, I’m asking for Jesus! Why? Because I need Him in the morning when I rise to help me get going, so I can do His work with diligence and excellence. And all during the day, I need Jesus to keep me running smoothly, purring like a well-tuned and oiled engine. And at night, when I lay me down to rest… oh brother, I need him to cleanse, purify and reinvigorate my soul, body and spirit, so I can have the strength and energy to go out and do His work again the next day.
And most importantly people, when the breath of Jesus’ awesome Spirit has left my mortal body, I need Him, more than ever, to carry me over to the other side of the river, which ONLY He can do. To carry me to those wonderful mansions that He’s built for those who believe and have faith in His miracle working powers; those who believe that ALL things are possible with and through Him, and that in His LOVING-kindness, He works everything out eventually for the good of those who LOVE Him!
So please, please, ‘Give I Jesus nuh! Just give I Jesus…cause He’s ALL I need… You can have all of this fallen world…Just give I Jesus…all day long…each and every day…until eternity…Just give I Jesus…!’ And that’s my spiel for today! (smile)
Oh my people, my people, what a blessed and awesome day it is when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, and His magnificent Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us! Brother! There’s no better day, than perhaps the one when we finally set foot in heaven! It’s such a life changing moment! As Bruh Paul puts it to the Corinthians: ‘Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (creation): old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.’ (2 Cor. 5:17)
Mama Mia! What a transformation; like that of an ugly caterpillar to a beautiful butterfly! And that’s only possibly through the receiving of Christ as one’s Lord and Saviour! So, as Bruh Paul further states to the church at Rome on becoming a new creation in Christ. ‘I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable (rational) service. 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.’ (Rom. 12:1-2)
Yeh friends, remember when we become a new creation in Christ, all the old things and evil ways of our lives are thrown out, so we also have to become transformed in body and soul. Those bodies of ours which had hitherto been used as instruments of sin, now have to work instead, on God’s behalf, as channels of righteousness. We have to manifest the works of God through them if we want to be hailed as true and serious believers in Christ. Thus we need to stop conforming, ‘to resist being poured into the mold of the present thinking, value systems, and conduct of this world.’
Yes mih brethren, our lives need to take on a mighty change when Jesus comes into them. That means when His Holy Spirit comes to dwell within us, we need to begin living after His Spirit and not by our old sinful systems. ‘For they that are after the flesh do mind (set their minds on) the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.’ (Rom. 8:5) And that makes sense people. You can’t live by both the old way and the new one; you have to make a choice. And if you’ve chosen Jesus, then you must live by the leading and guidance of His Spirit if you want to fulfill His will for your life.
As Bruh Paul continues: ‘For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.’ (Rom. 8:6-8)
The long and short of the story friends, is that you can’t live like the world lives, fleshly, carnally, sinfully, and please God, because that style of living does not suit His kingdom, and if you want to be seriously considered one of His people, then you have to give up the fleshly, carnal, sinful style of living. As simple as that! Oh, we will sin and do wrong sometimes, but it will no longer be a lifestyle; our lives will no longer be dominated by sin, but by righteousness, by our living in the Holy Spirit of God! Isn’t that wonderful? It most certainly is!
And for those of us who sincerely try to live thus, let’s go home now declaring (ah Lord eh!) our Tuesday Mantra, telling the whole world who and whose we are. In strong voice with sincere hearts: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
Now then, as new creations of Christ, let’s go out and share that awesome friendship, trust and LOVE of Jesus with those around us nuh. Much LOVE!
…when Jesus comes into our lives…He brings us…everlasting joy… peace…and LOVE… with heaven as our eternal home…
28 Jul 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a faithful entity, a new commandment, amabssadors, as I have loved you, at break-neck speed, brotherly LOVE, Burt Bacharach, but for everyone, by this, disciples of Jesus, epoxy, followers of Christ, glue, God's been placed on the back burner, greetings, Hal David, his death and resurrection accompliashed, hold our world together, honour, hurry, I give unto you, in god's eyes, increase more and more, Jackie DeShannon, Jesus Christ, justified, keep his commandments, LOVE, LOVE one another, love sweet love, made righteous, non-existent in our society, not just for some, on the cross at Calvary, our Comforter, our Lord and Saviour, pandemic, perfected, political strife, praise, provider, reconciled to God, reverence, room for improvement, sacrificed His sinless life, sanctified, shall all men know, share His love with the world, sincere hearts, strife filled, strong voice, taught of God to love, the beloved of God, the evil mire, the LOVE of God, the Son of God, Top o' the morn, topsy-turvy state, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, walk as Christ walked, what the world needs now, worry, ye are my disicples
John 13:34. A new commandment I give unto you, That ye LOVE one another; as I have LOVED you, that ye also LOVE one another.
Top o’ the morn my people! And wonderful greetings from our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who’s also our Comforter and Provider! And He’s asked me to convey these most faithful and worthy assurances this Tuesday morning at the end of July 2020, when our world is in a most turbulent and unrighteous state. ‘Fear Not: For, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.’
Wow! What reassuring sentiments from the One who sacrificed His sinless life on the cross at Calvary so that we could be reconciled to God, justified, sanctified, made righteous and all the other wonderful things His death and resurrection accomplished. Mama Mia! How can we not LOVE and honour, praise and reverence and sincerely worship such a mighty and faithful entity eh?
That brings me to these momentous words of His to all who believe in Him. ‘A new commandment I give unto you, That ye LOVE one another; as I have LOVED you, that ye also LOVE one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have LOVE one to another.’ (John 13:34-35)
Oh my people, those words are ever so important on at least two levels. The first is that the attribute of LOVE, God’s highest, strongest and most pervasive attribute should also be very strong and pervasive amongst us. But then too, by us showing that wonderful thing called LOVE to each other, mankind will see and know that we are truly disciples of Jesus!
Yes friends, our showing LOVE to each other is the surest way to point out, to manifest to the world, that we are real and true ambassadors of the Son of God; the One who’s name is above every other in the universe, except the Father’s, and to whom every knee must bow and every tongue confess that He is Lord to the glory of the Father.
Unfortunately though, that attribute of LOVE is not being displayed enough amongst the supposed followers of Christ, much less amongst those who deny Him. And that’s why our world is in such a divided, disunited, strife-filled and topsy-turvy state! The LOVE of God is almost non-existent in our current society. But then how can we expect it to be when God Himself doesn’t hold much sway in it. He’s been placed on the back burner, or simply kicked out of many of our lives and activities.
But the truth of the matter is that the LOVE of God is what’s so badly needed in our society to stop it from further crumbling and sinking right down into the evil mire that it’s currently headed towards at break-neck speed. But each of us supposed disciple must get up, get up NOW, and perform the actions of discipleship, particularly the showing of LOVE for each other if we’re to reclaim the world for our Lord and Saviour.
Listen to these most informative words of Bruh Paul to the Thessalonians on the subject nuh. ‘But as touching (concerning) brotherly LOVE ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to LOVE one another. And indeed ye do it toward all the brethren which are in all Macedonia: but we beseech you, brethren, that ye increase more and more.’ (1 Thess. 4:9-10)
Yeh friends, we’ve all been taught by God to LOVE, and many of us are trying our best to do it, but in these most trying and uncertain times, we desperately need to ratchet up that effort so that our world won’t fall apart. It’s as Jackie DeShannon’s popular song of some fifty five years ago, written by Hal David and Burt Bacharach, so rightly says:
‘What the world needs now is LOVE, sweet LOVE. It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of. What the world needs now is LOVE, sweet LOVE. No not just for some, But for everyone.’ It was appropriate then when we were in the throes of the Vietnam War, and it’s ever so appropriate now when we are in the throes of a pandemic clothed with serious political strife.
And John explains what the true test of knowledge, of discipleship is. ‘And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the LOVE of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought also to walk, even as he walked.’ (1 John 2:3-6)
Yes my people, the only way to know if we truly LOVE God and He is in us, is if are walking in His will, keeping His commandments, of which the most important is that we walk in LOVE! So please, let’s check our LOVE walk nuh, and see if it can hold up to close scrutiny. And whether it can or cannot, let’s do as Bruh Paul asks, and improve it, with God’s help obviously. We all have room for improvement, that’s for sure!
Now let’s; go home telling the world who and whose we are, as we declare (yeahhh!) our Tuesday Mantra. In strong voice, with sincere hearts: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
And that’s what true discipleship is; trusting our friend Jesus and sharing His wonderful, amazing and unconditional LOVE with the world. So let’s show some true discipleship nuh! (smile) Much LOVE!
…LOVE… the ONLY epoxy…the only glue…that can hold our world together…
21 Jul 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a complicated balancing act, a fool's wisdom, a little faith, between a rock and a hard place, bring heaven to your soul, bring your soul to heaven, calamity, called by my name, Christians, compassions, corruption, deception, disaster, explosive times, forget the Lord thy God, forgive their sin, from all my fears, from the ole school, God gives us power to get wealth, great faith, he delivered me, heal their land, heumble themselves, holy spirit, hurry, I sought the Lord, I'm not what I do, I'm not what I have, if my people, in god's eyes, lies, life, LOVE, manna, multitasking, negative stuff, new mercies, o magnify the Lord with me, physical distancing, pray, prayer, saints, saved him out of all his troubles, seek my face, share His love with the world, sincere hearts, social interaction, social media, summer's day, take a page from the Israelite's book, that moves heaven on earth, the abundant life, the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob, the lack of God and godliness, the purpose of life, the tool, their faces were not ashamed, then will I hear from heaven, this poor man cried, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, turn from their wicked ways, vexing problems, walk after other gods, wise enough to repent, works of the evil one, worry, ye shall surely perish
2 Chronicles 7:14. If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
Aye mih people, can you believe we almost at the end of July already? Not really nuh, because my mind is saying we just celebrated Canada Day and the 4th of July so how can it be the 21st already eh? But that incredible thing we call time doesn’t seem to be waiting on me at all. The duchess tired telling me that, but I can’t seem to understand it. (smile) Anyway, it’s Tuesday, and another wonderful summer’s day in my neighbourhood, so I’ll just get out there and enjoy it, with all the new mercies and compassions and manna and whatever else that’s been showered down for our enjoyment today!
And here’s a super thought for today…don’t remember where I got it from: ‘A little faith can bring your soul to heaven. Great faith will bring heaven to your soul.’ Now isn’t that an awesome truth! All it takes is a li’l faith to get to heaven, but when your faith is strong, heaven will come to you! Wow! Now that’s something to work towards my people!
And yuh see why I don’t like social media… One of my sisters bothering me here, but still want me to write a good Bit. (smile) She doesn’t realize that I’m only black and beautiful, not superman! And also from the ole school – no good at multitasking. But yuh know what – I’ll just ignore her until I’m done! But she won’t take my ignoring…
But what’s the purpose of life if you can’t have a li’l fun with your friends and family every so often eh, especially in these highly explosive times, with all the physical distancing and lack of our normal social interaction? None whatsoever! That’s all a part of the abundant life that Christ came to earth and died that we could have. (John 10:10) And yes, we must take life seriously, but sometimes we take it too seriously, while at other times we don’t take it seriously enough!
Life is a complicated balancing act which we can only successfully balance with the help of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ through His Holy Spirit that dwells within us for that very purpose! That’s why these words of Bruh David from Psalm 34 are ever so important in our LOVE walk. ‘O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together. I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. 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. 34:3-6)
Oh friends, what magnificent and encouraging words! Who else can do all of that for us eh? NOBODY! None but the great God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! That’s why we need to turn to Him in these trying and troubled times, why prayer and repentance should be our number one priorities, because He is the ONLY ONE who can help us solve the very vexing problems that are currently consuming us and driving so many of us crazy! And as I keep saying, there’s absolutely no doubt in my mind that some of the negative stuff we’re now experiencing is directly related to the lack of God and godliness in our society!
You can’t denigrate and try to kick out your Creator from amongst you and still be successful. As Moses asked the people of Israel: ‘Do ye thus requite (repay) the Lord, O foolish people and unwise? Is not he thy father that hath bought thee? Hath he not made thee, and established thee?’ (Deut. 32:6) Yeh friends, foolishly, like the Israelites, we’re repaying our great God with corruption, lies, deception, and all the other works of the evil one! So what can we expect eh?
Like Israel, every time they turned away from the God of their fathers, they experienced calamity and untold disaster. So why should we be any different eh, when it’s the very same God that we’re supposed to be worshipping? Some people seem to think we’re different, but I think that’s a fool’s wisdom. So why don’t we take another page from the Israelites book eh? When they disobeyed God and found themselves between a rock and a hard place, they were wise enough to repent and run back to Him. So why can’t we do the same thing now too? I’m sure that’s all He’s asking.
And I want to point out some scripture here that ought to drive home the point to us. ‘But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish (confirm) his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day. And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the Lord thy God, and walk after other Gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish. As the nations which the Lord destroyeth before your face, so shall ye perish; because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of the Lord your God.’ (Deut. 8:18-20)
Now isn’t that exactly what we have been doing in our society? And we like to say that the Lord and His Word never change, they are the same today and forever. That means the negative consequences of disobedience won’t change either. That sounds like good logic to me. (smile) But He’s such a wonderful God and Father that He’s made provision for us to turn again to Him, whenever we’re ready. Hear what He told Cousin Sol at the dedication of the first temple. ‘If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.’ (2 Chr. 7:14)
Back then, they had to go to the temple to sacrifice and pray, but we’ve had Jesus sacrificed for us once and for all time, and His Spirit now dwells within us, so we don’t need to go to the temple, we can come boldly to the throne of grace, and pray anywhere, without ceasing. That’s the most significant change in that area. So please fellow saints, fellow Christians, called by Christ’s name, let’s wise up and repent and pray and seek His face nuh, so that He can hear us and heal our land…in Jesus name.
Now it’s finally time to go home, declaring (steups!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the whole world know who and whose we are. In strong voice with sincere hearts: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
And the obvious corollary to that is for us to go out – with care – or stay at home, and share Jesus’ amazing LOVE and beautiful friendship! Much LOVE!
…prayer…the tool that moves heaven on earth…
14 Jul 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a crown of glory, a state of confusion, actions speak louder than words, amazing salvation, beautiful light of Jesus, brawtha, cast not away your confidence, Christians, confidence, endurance, epitome, fervent charity, friend of Jesus, gifts, God be glorified through Jesus Christ, God's unmerited favour, godly folks, godly grandmotherly woman, gossipy, great recompense of reward, helpful, hurry, icing on the cake, in all things, in god's eyes, lagniappe, LOVE, love covers a multitude of sins, loving kindness, Mavis harvey, need of patience, pandemic, perseverance, petty cliques, physical weather, proportion of faith, rango tango, resentful, reward, share His love with the world, sincere hearts, stand tough, strife, the beloved of God, the grace of God, the measure of faith, the only solution: Jesus Christ, tough people, tough times, Tuesday Mantra, tumultuous times, understanding, unified, what people say about me, worry
Hebrews 10:35. Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward.
And then it was a cloudy and uncertain Tuesday morning, just like the cloudy and uncertain Monday we had yesterday! But it’s oh so refreshing and wonderful when you don’t have to depend on the physical weather to get your sunshine; when you have the bright, amazing and beautiful light of Jesus and His everlasting salvation shining in your souls! Mama Mia! Yeh friends, you can tell that the ole fella is definitely glad to be alive to see another glorious day, be it physically rain or shine! It’s the only way to live this life! It also means that once we’re still here the Lord has big plans for us! Glory be!
One person who’s no longer here with us though enjoying our earthly friendship is our ever-faithful church sister Mavis Harvey. Mavis died last week, thankfully with her family by her side, after being in poor health for a long time. But you would never have known it from her staunch and positive behaviour. She was the epitome of the sweet, quiet, godly, grandmotherly woman. Didn’t say much, but whatever she said had value. She was one of the few people who religiously attended our Wednesday morning service.
And talk about stubborn! In the days before the church was shut down, Mavis, who lived a few blocks away and had some ambulatory problems, most always refused a ride to or from church unless the weather was real bad. She had her walker and that gave her exercise. She will always be remembered for her LOVING-kindness; baking stuff for the church, as well as knitting blankets and other baby stuff. It was good that our pastor, Father Jeff, was able to spend some time with her before she went home to glory. Our sincere condolences and prayers go out to her family. May your wonderful soul rest in peace Mavis, my sister.
Ah friends, for more saints like Mavis in our church families, instead of the rango- tango, gossipy, resentful, petty cliques and divisions that seem to currently proliferate. Sometimes it makes one belief that the world is more inside the church body than outside, the way we behave so much like it. And especially in these tumultuous times when unity is so badly needed, it’s sad and sorrowful that we have such a divided and fractured church.
But I firmly believe that these tumultuous times are instances that our great and mysterious God has allowed to come upon us partly for the purpose of bringing us together and showing the world that His people, Christ’s church are actually whom they claim to be; kind, LOVING, understanding, unified, helpful and godly folks, by actually doing Christ-like work amongst the poor, sick and needy. Yes, I know it’s a rather convoluted sentence, but full of truth, what I like to call a Bruh Paulian sentence. (smile)
That’s why precious people of God, I’m here to encourage us, to exhort us to take a true and sincere stand in these uncertain and trying times to be salt of the earth and lights of the world like Jesus desires of us, so that we can rebuild, renovate, fix, make right, whatever is currently wrong with His church. Remember, actions speak much louder than words, and if ever there was a time that plenty action was needed from the church it’s right now! So let’s not faint and give up during this time of pandemic and strife nuh.
Instead, let’s write this scripture indelibly in our hearts and action it with much vim and vigour. ‘Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward. For ye have need of patience (endurance, perseverance), that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.’ (Heb.10:35-36) Yes friends, remember giving up is not in Christ’s vocabulary. And whosoever will endure to the end will receive a crown of glory. And even then, it’s not so much about the eventual reward nuh, but the fact that we LOVE and admire Jesus and all that He’s sacrificed for us and we just want to do His will as best we can. The eventual reward is just lagniappe, brawtha, icing on the cake. It’s not what should really move us.
And I think this scripture from Peter is very useful for us in these non-understandable times. ‘But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer. And above all things have fervent charity (LOVE) among yourselves: for charity (LOVE) shall cover a multitude of sins. Use hospitality one to another without grudging (grumbling). As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles (utterances) of God; if any man minister. Let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.’ (1 Pet. 4:7-11)
Oh friends, please remember that whatever we have, be it earthly wealth and power, or spiritual gifts they still belong to God, and we are only stewards down here on earth to ensure that they are well used and distributed. And please allow these words of Bruh Paul to sink deeply into our consciousness and truly live by them. ‘For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.
For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office (function): So we being many, are one body in Christ, and every one (individually) members one of another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith.’ (Rom. 12:3-6)
Ah mih people, the long and short of the story is that through the grace, the generosity, the undeserved favour of God, we have all been given certain gifts in different areas, and we must use them diligently, without grumbling or greed, to effectively promote Christ’s church. That’s it in a nutshell! (smile) And there’s truly no better time for us to come together and do our thing (stir up the gift of God) than right now when the world is in such a state of confusion and we are the ONLY ones with the ONLY solution: Jesus Christ!
Now let’s go home declaring (yeahhh!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the world know who and whose we are. In strong voice, with sincere hearts: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
And do we ever need to share Jesus’ LOVE and friendship with this sad and sorrowful world! Much LOVE!
…in tough times…tough people…namely Christians…stand tough…
15 Jun 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a word to the wise is sufficient, antidote, be not proud, beauty of holiness, chaos, come short in obedience, confusion, fear, for His goodness and mercy, forgiving, free will, give ear, give glory to the Lord, grace, gracious, guarantees of safety, havoc, he cause darkness, he who has ears to hear, hear our prayer, hear ye, humble servants, in the palms of his hands, judge the people righteously, let him hear, like white on rice, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, need your help, pandemic, power and insight, powerful wings, Praise the Lord, prayer, safely ensconced, sincere hearts, tete a tete, the Lord hath spoken, to the children of men, under the shelter of
Jeremiah 13:15. Hear ye, and give ear, be not proud: for the Lord hath spoken.
Monday, Monday, Monday… Chuh! Another blooming day to go to work! And as if going to work wasn’t bad enough after such a relaxing weekend, we have to go amidst all the confusion and chaos caused by the Covid-19 virus and a host of disgruntled and dissatisfied protesters in the street. Ah Lord eh! What a way we world in a sad mess!
But friends, the news isn’t all bad! No, there’s some good stuff too – namely that the Creator and Controller of this great universe, Almighty God Himself…Yahweh…Jehovah – whatever name you choose – has His people safely ensconced in the palms of His mighty hands, under the shelter of His powerful wings! And all His children declared a loud and proud: ‘Praise the Lord for His goodness and mercy to the children of men!’
But the problem we encounter though, is that with our free will it behooves us to come to Him, He won’t simply conscript us like soldiers in time of war. We have to join His army of our own free will, and once we do that, we then need to stick ever so closely to Him, like white on rice. (smile) He will keep and protect us. That’s His ever-faithful promise, and all the storms that are currently besetting us will pass, as they all do – just in His time.
So there’s no need to fear what’s currently happening in our world, although we must be concerned and do our part to help reshape life in a more equitable and Christian manner. And one of the ways we can ALL participate in that reshaping is through prayer; the most powerful weapon in the universe! It’s the method of communication that the Lord, in His eternal wisdom, devised for us to bring our problems and concerns to Him, as well as to just have friendly chats and tete-`a-tetes with Him.
So as one strong voice, with sincere hearts, let’s call out to Him right now nuh, invoking our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, asking for His mercy and grace in the worldwide problems that we’re now facing. ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You that this Monday morning we’re alive, and hopefully haven’t contracted the virus that’s causing havoc around our world. And our anxieties have been recently deepened because some restrictions have been lifted in the lockdown, so more of us are going out to work now without any guarantees of safety.
Then to complicate matters Father, suddenly, and unexpectedly, just like the virus, worldwide strife and protests have also struck us in this sad time of pandemic, and we don’t have a clue how to handle either situation properly. Mass confusion is currently prevailing in our world, and we desperately need your help to solve both problems, as You are the ONLY One with the power and insight to successfully handle them.
Heavenly Father, we admit that we have all sinned and seriously come short in obedience and compliance to Your Word, but we know that You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, and You have faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. That’s why we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading with You to give us, ordinary folks, as well as our leaders, employers and medical personnel, wise guidance and direction.
Please show us how to successfully handle these scourges that are currently plaguing Your beautiful earth. Please help our leaders to wisely quell the strife and protests, and the scientists to find a positive solution, a sure antidote to the virus as quickly as possible. And for those who have already contracted the virus, or been injured in the strife, we pray that You will ease their suffering and heal them.
Father, please show them Your awesome grace and mercy, and keep Your promise that You’ll hear our prayer, forgive us, and heal our land if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again we say: Amen!’
And my people, if our hearts were truly sincere in that prayer, then we know that our faithful God has begun working on the solution to our problems, and they will be eventually conquered, but in His time, when He decides that His purpose for allowing it to happen has been achieved. Until then, we just have to hope and pray and stay strong in His LOVE! And living the way He desires just might help us too. (smile)
For interest sake, I just opened the Good Book and discovered these inspiring words uttered by the prophet Jeremiah to his people Israel when they were in a period of disobedience. ‘Hear ye, and give ear, be not proud: for the Lord hath spoken. Give glory to the Lord your God, before he cause darkness. And before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains, and while ye look for light, he turn it into the shadow of death, and make it gross darkness.’ (Jer. 13:15-16) Now wise people hearing those words would certainly take some time to ponder their lives and see if they are doing what the prophet advises. For who knows if that is one of the reasons our world is currently so dark, so overrun by darkness?
And the scholars add this interesting explanation: ‘13:15-17. A third illustration concerns a weary traveller in danger of being overtaken by the falling darkness of night. Such was Judah. It must renounce all pride and give God His rightful glory before the final darkness of national catastrophe engulfs it.’
And the psalmist also had these wise words of advice: ‘Give (ascribe) unto the Lord, O ye kindreds of the people, give unto the Lord glory and strength. Give (ascribe) unto the Lord the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts. O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: fear (tremble) before him all the earth. Say among the heathen (nations) that the Lord reigneth: the world also shall be (is firmly) established that it shall not be moved (shaken): he shall judge the people righteously.’ (Ps. 96:7-10)
What more can I say eh friends and neighbours? Just that a word to the wise is usually sufficient, and he who has ears to hear, let him hear! Much LOVE!
…obey God…and all will be well…
19 May 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a very present help, abundantly available help, any man hear my voice, blissful contentment, consider God's works, Coronavirus lockdown, creful cleansing, deliverance of Jerusalem, faith, fears faded away, find all the we want, flooded our souls, gigantic thoughts of you, God is a place of security, God is our refuge and strength, God protects His city, God's indisputable Word, hurry, I stand at the door and knock, I will come in, in god's eyes, in trouble, insurmountable, lead and guide us, maganimous God, Martin Luther, mask wearing, melted like wax, mere mortals, not what I do, One Year Book of Bible promises, only human, only in Christ, open the door, our great God Jehovah, physical distancing, problems, Protestant Reformation, Queen Victoria holiday, Ruth Harms Calkin, saturated my mind, share His love, sincere hearts, strong and confident, submit to God's authority, the beloved of God, the valley of despair, tried and tested, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, unfavourable conditions, unshakeable confidence, walked and breathed with God, worry, You did all the rest, you led me out of
Psalm 46:1. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help (an abundantly available help) in trouble.
And after a rainy and soggy Queen Vic holiday, Tuesday has dawned dry, but cloudy, with blustery winds! And rather unfortunately, it’s under those unfavourable conditions that many of us have to return to work after several weeks of being home under the Coronavirus lockdown. It’s good that some restrictions have been lifted, but there are still a whole lot of unknowns and uncertainties surrounding this virus. So let’s not be rash and irresponsible as we go about our newly gained freedom.
Yes friends, if we want to prevent another serious outbreak, we still need to maintain that careful cleansing and physical distancing and mask wearing routine as more of us move around outside and come into close contact with each other. It’s as simple as that. And yes, it might sound simple in words, but in deeds and in actions, it’s a completely different matter; a horse of a different colour. (smile)
Ah mih people, I know that our faith has already been tried and severely tested with the sudden appearance of this unknown virus and the shutdown it’s caused, and now it’s going to be further tested with going out and working and behaving in a brand new way. And since we’re only human, mere mortals, we’re therefore subject to fear, especially fear of the unknown and the untested. But please, let’s rely on our strong faith to lead and guide us as we ought to nuh, for it’s in these fearful and uncertain times that we need our faith to come forward and lift us up.
Remember that’s one of the basic purposes of faith, of God’s indisputable Word in our lives. And we need to allow faithful and promising scriptures like this one to keep us strong and confident in our great God Jehovah! In the majestic and faith lifting words of Bruh Paul to his young protégé Timothy, let us confidently remember: ‘For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power (His Holy Spirit), and of LOVE, and of a sound (disciplined) mind.’ (2 Tim. 1:7) Yes friends, in these sad and doubtful times we need to have that scripture amongst many others continually echoing in our hearts and souls to keep us strong and faithful.
And to help us do that, today, we’re featuring this encouraging and reassuring poem from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. It’s appropriately titled: ‘You Did All the Rest.’ So please pray with me: ‘O Lord God! I did what You asked me to do: I just opened windows Wide… Wide… And You did all the rest! You poured into my heart A blessed, blissful contentment. You saturated my mind with gigantic thoughts of You. You struck an artesian well within me Until sheer joy sprang forth.
You led me out of the valley of despair Into a succession of incredible happenings. Problems which seemed insurmountable Melted like wax before my eyes. Fears faded away like threatening clouds. You startled me You amazed me With the glory of Your revelation. It is true Gloriously true…I have literally walked and breathed with God. I just opened windows Wide… Wide… God, You did all the rest!’ And that’s exactly what our wonderful, great, magnificent and magnanimous God will do my faithful brethren if we open the windows of our hearts and souls WIDE… WIDE.. to Him! Glory Be!
So as the Word faithfully promises: ‘Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup (dine) with him, and he with me.’ (Rev. 3:20) Oh friends, I’m sure that Christ is knocking on many doors of many of our hearts today; Right Now! So please, please, let’s not turn Him away nuh. Let’s open the doors and windows and whatever openings there are wide, wide, so that He can come in and be with us and relieve us of whatever fears and problems and troubles and uncertainties that have flooded our souls!
Remember Christ is the ANSWER! The ANSWER to whatever ails us! And the scripture verse that buoys up our poem, comes from Psalm 46, mighty words indeed that show how great a God, our God is. Hear the psalmist tell it like it is nuh: ‘God is our refuge and strength, a very present help (an abundantly available help) in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst (the heart) of the sea: Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.’ (Ps. 46:1-3)
Yes my faithful friends in Christ, let’s stop for a moment and ponder those words of enormous faith nuh. Let’s allow them to sink into our hearts, bodies and souls and strengthen and encourage us! For there is nothing else in this world that can lift us up like the unerring and ever-truthful Word of God! And I recommend that after reading the Bit, we should all get out our Bibles and read Psalm 46 in its entirety, because it is such a powerful and encouraging piece of scripture. So much so that I’ll share what the scholars say about it.
‘Psalm 46. This psalm expresses thanks for the deliverance of Jerusalem, the city of God (vs. 4). It contains three key ideas. First. God is a place of security when all else is insecure (vs. 1-3). Second, God protects His city, giving its people assurance and comfort (vs. 4-7). Third, all men are called upon to consider God’s works and submit to His authority (vs. 8-11). The unshakeable confidence with which the psalm leaves the believer prompted Martin Luther (a German priest, one of the Leaders of the 16th century Protestant Reformation) to pen one of the greatest hymns of all time, ‘A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.”
Oh my people, my people, it’s that unshakeable confidence I want us to display today…and every day! And we can do it today, when in strong voice with sincere hearts we declare (yeahhh!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting all and sundry know who and whose we are. Wow!
All together 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 go out, or stay in, (smile) and do exactly that now nuh! Much LOVE!
…ONLY in Christ…can we ever find…ALL that we ever want and need…
31 Mar 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a continuation of life, antidote for fear, assured of a resurrection, chaos, Christ as Lord and saviour, Christ once offered, confusion, Coronavirus, curfew, faith, fearless voices, ghastly sins, hope, Hope in Jesus, horse of a different colour, I am the beloved of god, I don't have to hurry, I don't have to worry, in god's eyes, in God's time, in the spiritual plane, it is appointed unto men, let not your heart be troubled, LOVE, my peace I give unto you, neither let it be afraid, not as the world giveth, not what I do, not what I have, not what people say about me, once to die, peace, Peace i leave with you, penchant for late nights, prisoners of hope, promise of salvation, response of the unbeliever, Second Coming of Christ, share His love with the world, sincere hearts, stand strong and steadfast, the grim reaper, the truth will set us free, then the judgement, to bear the sins of may, too late precautions, trust my friend Jesus, truth, Tuesday Mantra
John 14:27. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
And another day has bitten the dust…But our world is still alive, though somewhat discombobulated; scarred and scared by the ole Coronavirus, since not enough good, but still too much bad and ugly is happening. And is it ever a good thing that we believers know the Truth, and that the Truth will set us free! Glory to God! A few places are holding their own, but many, like the U. S. are now exploding because of too late precautions. And I understand that mih people in J.A will be under lock and key from tomorrow…
Hn! Ah talking about a curfew from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. And believe me, I know what that is like, having experienced it way back in 1970 with the Black Power Riots in T&T. The voluntary stay at home now is bad enough, but when you can’t be seen in the streets at all during certain hours, that’s a horse of a different colour, especially if the military and the police are out looking for curfew breakers. But not to worry mih bredrin, our good God has it all under control. We just have to obey our leaders, stay home and practice safe routines, and come to Him in sincere prayer with heartfelt repentance for our myriad number of ghastly sins.
And as He has promised, eventually, everything will be worked out for our benefit. Remember though, that it will all happen in His time, not ours, and that’s the cut-tail part of it all. We hate to wait, and the Lord doesn’t hurry! And if yuh doh believe me, then just try it and see nuh! (smile) Oh my people, this virus business is indeed a serious matter, but too many of us are letting it get us too afraid, depressed and daily losing hope. But now is the time when we believers ought to be on the ascendance with our strong and wonderful faith!
It’s not the time for us to wilt like faded and dying roses, as so many of us are doing, because the world needs that awesome faith we have more than ever now! Now is the time for us to stand up and really show our true colours; be the amazing salt and light of the world that Jesus desires of us! And yuh know what? If, we believers, with all of our supposed faith in, and awesome promises of God, become fearful and lose hope, what will be the response of the unbeliever be eh, of the rest of the world, who don’t have what we have? Utter chaos and confusion!
That’s why, as a group, Christians need to stand strong and steadfast, take the matter seriously, but don’t panic and give assurances to the unbelievers. It’s at times like these when we can do our best evangelical work, bringing others to Christ, by the staunch and steadfast examples we set. Jesus knew that we’d face trials and tribulations, thus His encouraging and reassuring words. ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In this world ye shall have tribulations: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33)
And a lot of us quick to quote those words, but when the time comes to put them into actual action, like now, too many of us falter and fail. If we falter now friends, it means that we don’t have sufficient faith and trust in our God, our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit that’s supposed to dwell in us and lead and guide us in godly righteousness. We obviously don’t hold Jesus’ many assurances of ‘FEAR NOT!’ in high regard. Remember, courage is not the absence of fear, but of doing stuff while afraid, with the power of the Holy Spirit assisting us.
And what about these words of Jesus eh? ‘Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.’ (John 14:27) It doesn’t seem as though we are taking those words seriously either. And what if some of us die? We all have to go sometime. As the Good Book says: ‘And it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgement.’ (Heb. 9:27) Now don’t get me wrong, very few of us are ready to, or want to die right now, including me, but the truth is that none of us have the power or authority to prolong our lives, so when the Grim Reaper comes a calling, we just have to go, whether we want to or not.
The one proviso necessary though before that time comes, is that we go with Christ as our Lord and Saviour tucked away safely and deeply in our hearts. So once you truly have Jesus as the Light of your life, there’s no need to fear death, for what we call death, the physical aspect, is merely a leaving of our physical body behind, with a glorious continuation of life on the other side, in the spiritual plane, with Jesus. Oh friends, just like Christ died once, on our behalf, we can only die once, but with Him in our hearts, we are assured of a resurrection just like Him.
And thus let’s hold on tight to this somewhat obscure and unknown verse of scripture: ‘So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look (eagerly wait) for him shall he reappear the second time without (apart from) sin unto salvation.’ (Heb. 9:28) So my faithful brethren, instead of dwelling on the worst case scenario in these trying times, let’s instead focus on the big picture nuh; the Second Coming of Christ with the beautiful promise of salvation in His wings! That’s the wise way to handle this current situation, and it will help us to stand strong and steadfast as prisoners of divine hope.
Now let’s go home showing our mettle nuh, by declaring (yeahhh!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the whole world know who and whose we are. In strong, fearless voices, with sincere hearts: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
And now, the natural consequence of that declaration (steups!) is to action it in whatever safe way we can. Much LOVE!
…sincere HOPE in Christ…is the ONLY antidote for fear…
P.S. Yeh, it’s somewhat late, due as usual to my penchant for late nights, (smile) but I like it…and I hope you do too. Much LOVE!
18 Mar 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a grain of mustard seed, according to your faith, boost others faith, Christians, Covid-19, eagerly, enviable position in Christ, faith, fight the good fight, foretold Peter's betrayal, forgivenss, glad to be alive, halfway home, hands on the plough, he touched their eyes, hebrews 11, human trials, increase our faith, irreparable damage, keep our faith strong, life goes on, light at the end of the tunnel, looking forward, not looking back, O ye of little faith, pandemic, remain steadfast, sift you as whaet, sincere hearts, surender, sycamore tree, the breath of life, the evidence of things not seen, the heroes of faith, the substance of things hoped for, their eyes were opened, to a glorious future with Jesus, trust, unbelieving brethren, vaccine, wait patiently, walk the talk of faith, Wednesday Wail, with perseverance, worldwide calamity
Matthew 9:29. Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you.
And life goes on in this Covid-19 season. It has to…and it will…God willing of course! And despite all the bad news, as always, there’s a li’l light at the end of the tunnel, though somewhat far away. (smile) I’m talking about the start of human trials for a vaccine to stop the deadly disease that now holds our world in a tight stranglehold. Glory be! Apparently both in China and the U.S. approval has been given to begin clinical trials on human subjects, but who knows how and when that will prove successful.
Oh yes, we will defeat the virus eventually, we have to believe that, otherwise all our other efforts will be in vain. The problem though is when will that happen, and how many lives would have been lost and irreparable damage done to our society and economy by then? Ah my fellow believers, this is the time for us to truly show up as salt and light to our unbelieving brethren. This is the time when we have to use our incredible faith to help the world get through this evil pandemic.
It’s one of those times when the church has got to step forward and be amongst the leading lights, especially in terms of faith. This is a significant occasion for Christians to not only talk, but more importantly walk their talk of faith. Remember Jesus’ alluding at almost all of his healings and miracles to the faith of the receivers, and how He kept accusing those who should have known better: ‘O ye of little faith.’ It wasn’t only His powers that caused the miracles but also the participants faith.
Remember too when He healed the two blind men. He first asked them: ‘Believe ye that I am able to do this (heal you)? They said unto him, Yea, Lord. Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be unto you. And their eyes were opened; and Jesus straitly charged (strictly warned) them, saying, See that no man know it. But they, when they were departed, spread abroad his fame in all that country (land).’ (Matt. 9:28-31)
Oh precious people of God, there are so many lessons for us in that passage of scripture in these trying times. The first being that we have to truly believe without a shred of doubt, that Jesus is who He says He is, and can do what He says He can do. That’s where our faith and trust and surrender comes in. Remember, it’s according to the amount of those things we have that our lives can move from good to bad and vice-versa. Remember too, the time Jesus was teaching the disciples about forgiveness, and it was such a hard lesson – just keep on forgiving? (Luke 17:1-4)
What happened then eh? The Good Book tells us: ‘And the disciples said unto the Lord, Increase our faith. And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamore (mulberry) tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you.’ (Luke 17:5-6) Wow! That’s the awesome power of true and strong faith.
And the scholars add this interesting explanation. ‘17:5-6. The magnitude of the command in verse 4 leads to a plea for assistance. Faith, understood here not merely in a mental sense, but also in the sense of active “faithfulness,” is the key. One’s faith often increases as one steps out in trusting obedience.’ And I would go even further and say, that that’s the ONLY WAY our faith ever increases! We need to step out in obedience, with whatever faith we then have, and then see God work wonderfully in our lives. And every time we do that, our faith grows!
Right now, in these trying times friends, we faithful believers need to activate our faithfulness in whatever manner we can to keep the hope of others alive. That’s our bounden duty! We were put here in this time to do that! And that is highlighted by Jesus’ words to Simon Peter when He foretold Peter’s betrayal. ‘And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted (you have turned again), strengthen thy brethren.’ (Luke 22:31-32)
Yuh see friends, Jesus predicted Peter’s denial, but also his transformation back to his former strong faith. And then, he was to help others boost their faith. And I guess that’s what I am now trying to do; keep our faith alive and strong…and even growing too, for remember it’s in the hard and difficult times that our faith grows!
Now I don’t want to make this as long as yesterday, (smile) so I’ll just remind us of that wonderful chapter 11 in Hebrews; aptly called the Heroes of Faith, that tells us about many great men and women of faith. They all had problems to surmount, but they all surmounted them by FAITH in the God their forefathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. I think it will be only fitting for ALL of us to read that awesome chapter as often as we need to keep our faith strong in this time of worldwide calamity.
And please remember that FAITH is the substance (realization) of things hoped for, the evidence (conviction) of things not seen.’ (Heb. 11:1) Yes, faith is all about the good things we’re hoping for, in the Lord’s Will, that we don’t see, but are eagerly expecting them and waiting for them with patience and perseverance. And our greatest hope right now…a vaccine for the Covid-19 virus. So let’s believe that we will eventually get one, and consequently, wait patiently, earnestly, eagerly and with perseverance for it.
Now let’s go home declaring (chuh man!) our Wednesday Wail, as we let this primarily unbelieving world know of our enviable position in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. In strong voice, with sincere hearts and plenty, plenty faith: ‘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!’
Oh yes friends, if we fight the good fight and remain steadfast in our faith to the end, then that future will indeed be glorious; more glorious than we can ever ask or imagine! Much LOVE!
…faith can move mountains…as well as molehills…
25 Feb 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a commitment to holy living, a deceitful tongue, a false witness, a high look, a lying tongue, a perverse heart, a proud heart, a proud look, a wicked heart, abominations, bloodthirsty, Carnival Tuesday in T&T, coals to burn thy tongue, cut off, destroy, don't have to hurry, don't have to worry, evil continually, feet, hands that shed innocent blood, haughty eyes, I am the beloved of god, in god's eyes, it repented the Lord, lying lips, make you clean, Noah, not what I do, not what I have, pales in comparison, pray, pretty costumes, rumours of war, seven are an abomination, shaking their booties, share His love with the world, sharp arrows, sincere hearts, six things the Lord hates, slandereth their neighbour, soweth discord among brethren, speaketh lies, spread forth your hands, strife, strong voice, swift in running to mischief, the thoughts of his heart, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, wars, wash you, winer girls
Proverbs 6:16. These six things doth the Lord hate; yea, seven are an abomination unto him (His soul).
So it’s Tuesday – seven days into the vacation – seven days ahready! Brother, the time really flying fast sir! And can you believe that the ole fella has not done anything exciting as yet! Chuh! In fact I’ve only left the confines of the property once since I got here, to go to the wedding last Saturday. It’s all inclusive so I don’t really need to go anywhere to get much of anything. But I know that you all are bored with my just going over the street to the beach and back. (smile) I sincerely promise though, before it’s over, I’m going to have some exciting things to report. So just bear with me nuh.
And today is the big mas day in T&T, Carnival Tuesday with all the pretty costumes and winer girls on the road, shaking their booties! But I was never that big a mas fan, and the stuff today pales in comparison to the productions of yesteryear. The costumes are much more expensive and much skimpier; like a bra top and bikini bottom and some feathers on your back.
That’s not mas as I know and appreciate it. But it still resonates strongly with some people. Good for them. So what’s the plan for today eh? As usual – nothing! But I am trying to get the Bit out early so I can do stuff if the opportunity arises. And most appropriately for Carnival Day, I’ve been led to this oh so relevant scripture, since so many untoward things happen on this particular day. (smile) And we talking about the seven deadly sins, according to the wise words of Cousin Sol. ‘These six things doth the Lord hate; yea, seven are an abomination unto him (His soul).’
And I know some of us are just dying to hear what those seven abominable things are that the Lord hates. Well here goes: ‘A proud look (haughty eyes), a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, A heart that deviseth wicked imaginations (devises wicked plans), feet that be swift in running to mischief (evil), A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.’ (Prov. 6:17-19)
There we have them friends, seven deadly sins which are unfortunately very prevalent in today’s society, with we supposed Christians doing our fair share of them. We all know we should not participate in them, but I guess the pull of the enemy and our human nature are too strong for many of us. Now let’s see if we can find some scriptures that deal with those abominations.
Hear Bruh David from Psalm 101 – A commitment to holy living. ‘I will set no wicked (worthless) thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside (to wickedness); it shall not cleave (cling) to me. A froward (perverse) heart shall depart from me: I will not know a wicked person (wickedness). Whoso privily (secretly) slandereth his neighbour, him will I cut off (destroy): him that hath a high look and a proud heart will I not suffer endure.’ (Ps. 101:3-5)
Yuh see friends, even Bruh David refused to put up with wickedness and haughtiness and slander. Much less our holy and just God. And the psalmist in Psalm 120 tearfully asks the Lord to: ‘Deliver my soul, O Lord, from lying lips, and from a deceitful tongue. What shall be given unto thee? Or what shall be done unto thee, thou false (deceitful) tongue? Sharp arrows of the mighty (warrior), with coals of juniper (the broom tree).’ (Ps.120:2-4)
Yuh see that mih people, for lying and deceitful tongues he’s calling for arrows from the strong and coals to burn thy tongue, possibly like how Isaiah’s was burnt when he was anointed. (Is. 6:5-7) And Isaiah himself earlier on tells us to stay away from abominations:
‘And when ye spread forth your hands (pray), I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood (bloodshed). Wash you, make you clean; put away your evil doing from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; Learn to do well; seek judgement (justice), relieve the oppressed, judge (vindicate, defend) the fatherless, plead for the widow.’ (Is.1:15-16)
Oh my precious brethren, those are words this evil, oppressive and bloodthirsty world of ours would do well to take to heart! We badly need a call to worldwide repentance! And I don’t know, but the devil just seems to be so strong in us that from early o’clock we’ve been evil, so evil, that way back when in Genesis, the Lord had to shake His head and bawl. Why?
‘And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart (all his thoughts) was only evil continually (all the day). And it repented the Lord (the Lord was sorry) that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.’ (Gen.6:5-6)
Yuh see how hurt God was back then when mankind was pure wickedness friends? Yuh think He’s not the same way now that we’ve come back to that point, and possibly are even worse than then, because we have invented so much more depravity with our increased learning and knowledge. That great disappointment led Him to destroy all living things except Noah and his family and one pair of each animal.
How do we know He won’t do the same thing again eh, except not with water, because He promised no more water destruction, but what about fire and brimstone eh? The Lord can destroy us in ways we don’t even know about? Who’s to say that the many new diseases and reoccurrence of old ones and all the other unfortunate and negative disasters currently happening in our world is not a part of His plan eh?
And when you add the wars, strife and rumours of wars, it might just be His plan for us to eradicate ourselves, because that’s exactly where we are heading, if we continue down this evil road we’re currently on. I had some more scriptures to add yes, but I’ll leave them for another day. I think we’ve gotten the idea the Lord wants us to get. (smile)
So let’s go home declaring (yeah!) our Tuesday Mantra proudly letting the world know who and whose we are. In strong voice with sincere hearts: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
Now let’s go out and do just that nuh! Much LOVE!
…the wicked shall be cast into the darkness of eternity…but the righteous shall dwell in everlasting light and peace with the Lord…
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