27 Aug 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a grain of mustard seed, a pension, all things, ask, ask for in prayer, aura of love, boredom, Christians, confidence, decisions, do nothing, enthusiasm, eternal life, evil, faith, fasting, fig tree, flesh is weak, friends, glorious kingdom, grace, holy spirit, hope, humble servants, in control of wealth, inactivity, it shall be given to you, it shall be opened, Jesus Christ, joy, knock, lesser mortals, lies, lifestyles, LOVE, mercy, merry-go-round, Monday Morniing Battle Hymn, mover and shaker, nothing shall be impossible to you, power, prayer, put out to pasture, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, remove hence, renewed vitality, rest, retirement, righteousness., rougher, salvation, seek, serious business, spirit is willing, spiritual armour, standard of living, steadfast faith, tongue in cheek, tougher, trust, truth, unbelief, ungodly world, waning years, wisdom, ye shall find, ye shall receive
Matthew 21:22. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.
So the whole new workweek rigmarole begins again today eh friends! I know it gets rather tedious and frustrating sometimes, doing the same thing every week, like you’re on a merry-go-round that never stops. But that’s just the way of life in our Western Society.
And then, after numerous years of merry-go-rounding, you’re put out to pasture, nicely termed retirement, when you are allowed, or expected to sit at home and do nothing, and consequently so many of us just waste away and die of boredom and inactivity. Something’s wrong with that picture, isn’t it?
But I guess that those in control of wealth and power in our society don’t care too much about us lesser mortals, so they work us like slaves when we’re young, then when our bodies can’t handle the slave labour any longer, they just cast us on the scrap heap with a few measly dollars, nicely termed a pension, on which we’re seldom ever able to maintain our accustomed standard of living. But again, that’s Western Society for you!
And if you want to be able to collect the measly few pension dollars somewhere down the line, you’d better get up and get yourself out to labour this Monday morning, because the end amount depends on your consistency now.
Ah friends, I’m chuckling as I write this tongue in cheek, but it’s serious business. The decisions we make today will affect our lives and lifestyles in our waning years. So please, let’s do the wise and sensible thing nuh; hie thee hither to labour. (smile)
And if your spirit is willing, but your flesh is weak, then join us in trilling our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, which is a sure antidote for anything that ails you on this first day of the new workweek. Altogether now, with whatever enthusiasm you can muster.
‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Yes my people! I know we’re all beginning to breathe easier and more positively, because the Holy Spirit is working its blessedness in us. So take heart, for once the Holy Spirit refills our spirits with God’s grace and mercy, we WILL go out and do an excellent job in Jesus’ name!
And why is that? Because Jesus assured us of it in our Bit: ‘And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.’ And we just asked for it in prayer above. Why pray, if you don’t believe that your prayers will be answered eh?
The disciples were amazed at the simple words Jesus said to a fig tree that had no fruit. ‘Let no fruit grow on thee henceforward for ever,’ (Matt.21:19) and it just dried up and withered in a day’s time. Then Jesus solemnly informed them: ‘Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto the mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.’ (Matt.21:21)
Faith, friends, is the great mover and shaker in a believer’s life. If you have it, you can move mountains, but if you don’t then times will be even rougher and tougher for you in this abysmal world in which we currently live. And remember when the disciples could not remove a demon from a child and they asked Jesus why?
He said to them: ‘Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove (move); and nothing shall be impossible unto you. Howbeit this kind goeth not out by prayer and fasting.’ (Matt.17:20-21)
And remember also, these applicable words of Jesus earlier on. ‘Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.’ (Matt. 7:7-8)
Ah friends, yuh see the same basic things are important in each believer’s life; praying, fasting, asking, seeking, knocking and believing. And I guess the saying that faith moves mountains is derived from the words of Jesus on the subject. So let’s try and build up our faith, today and everyday we’re alive nuh. It will provide enormous and outstanding benefits. Much LOVE!
…without faith…it is impossible to go to God…
09 Oct 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: 24/7 society, a wake up call, a warning, aura of love, Babylon, blessings, bondage, boundary, calamity, Christians, Columbus Day, confidence, covenant, disaster, drink the sweet, drunk or sober, earthly journey, eat and drink, eat the fat, Egypt, enthusiasm, evil, feasting, festivity, for whom nothing is prepared, forsake our evil ways, freedom, friends, from whom all blessings flow, generosity, giving thanks, glorious kingdom, go your way, God's Word, good graces of almighty God, grace, Granny's warning, holy spirit, humble servants, hurricane Nate, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy, lies, Louisiana, LOVE, magnanamity, mind your business, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, neither be ye sorry, praise God, recovery, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, repent, rest, salvation, send portions, sharing mode, showered down, spiritual armour, standard of living, steadfast faith, taunts, thanks and praise, Thanksgiving Day, the goodness of God, the joy of the Lord is your strength, the power to get wealth, this day is holy, trials, tribulations, truth, undisputed God, ungodly world, wiles, wisdom
Nehemiah 8:10. Then he said unto them, go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength.
So friends, it’s Monday…But the good news is that both in Canada and the U.S it’s a public holiday. In the U.S it’s Columbus Day, celebrating the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the Americas in the 1490’s. Meanwhile, in Canada, we’re celebrating our Thanksgiving Day with feasting and festivity, and hopefully thanks and praise to Almighty God for all the blessings He’s recently showered down on our land.
Let’s also be thankful that hurricane Nate did not do much damage to the part of Louisiana that it passed over yesterday. Ah Lord eh! Hopefully this will be the last storm for this year, for the area could not handle much more disaster. Don’t forget to include in our prayers those who have recently suffered serious setbacks and that they are on their way to recovery and rebuilding their lives. Remember too the ones who are still undergoing trials and tribulations.
And let’s hope that all this unexpected calamity serves as a wake-up call for us to repent, to forsake our evil ways and get back into the good graces of Almighty God, for it’s difficult not to consider the unparalleled circumstances that have recently afflicted us as a warning from Him. So let’s pray that we will take the warning to heart and wisely make amends for our sinful ways, and once again make Him the undisputed God of our society.
Anyway, it’s Monday, which means that in our 24/7 society, some people must go to work, regardless of the public holiday, and there’s no time harder to get up and go out to labour than on days like these, when the majority of people are off. So let’s send them out on a high note with a wonderful rendition of our Monday Morning Battle Hymn.
In strong voice now, with lots of enthusiasm: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle. Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
And as always, the voices of those not going out to work are the loudest and most raucous since many of us have already been celebrating for the past couple days. (smile) And whether you like it or not, I have to remind us of Granny’s warning; that drunk or sober we need to mind our business very closely, as too much celebrating can make us cross over the Christian boundary line without even noticing it, thus giving the enemy a gleeful chance to invade our space, something we want to avoid at all costs.
That brings us to our Bit, the words of Nehemiah to the people of Israel after they had rebuilt Jerusalem and had heard for the first time God’s Word read from His Holy Book by the scribe Ezra. ‘Then he said unto them, go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength.’
It was indeed a day of rejoicing for those Israelites, many of whom had recently returned from captivity in Babylon and were enjoying freedom for the first time in many a day, if not the first time in their lives. We should also be in rejoicing and sharing mode, but more importantly, making sure that we give God His rightful deserts of thanks and praise for bringing us to this high standard of living, for it’s only through His generosity and magnanimity that it’s possible.
Remember what we sang yesterday? ‘Praise God from whom all blessings flow…’ And that’s the truth in spades! For as the Good Book tells 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.’ (Deut.8:18)
Yeh friends, the Lord brought Israel out of bondage in Egypt and kept them in the wilderness for forty years, then enabled them to go into the Promised Land and take it over. Without His help, none of that would have been possible. Likewise without God’s help, our current prosperity would not have ever been realized.
So I’m imploring us, that as we gather today, with friends, families and neighbours, let’s spend some time remembering and talking about the goodness of God towards us, and giving Him appropriate thanks and praise, glorifying and exalting His precious name, for each and every one of us has so many things to be thankful to God for in this our earthly journey. We didn’t reach this stage of evolution through our own efforts, but through God’s blessings. Consequently we ought to show the necessary gratitude. Much LOVE!
…it’s not about eating and drinking…but giving thanks…to be able to eat and drink…there is a big difference…
06 Sep 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future, a warning, a word of warning to the wise, Abraham Isaac and Jacob, according to my righteousness, adversity, Antigua, Bad News, Barbuda, chaos, children, chosen people, Christians, cleanness of my hands, darkness, David, demise, disciples, enemy, erring on the right side, evil, free fall, glad to be alive, glory hallelujah, good, halfway home, hurricane Irma, Jesus, living for Christ, LOVE, loving arms, most powerful force, my hands are on the plough, natural disasters, North American mainland, not turning back, on which side his bread was buttered, posturing, prayer, raising Cain, recompensed me, repentance, rewarded, righteousness, Saul, share the Love of Jesus, standard of living, strife, the breath of life, the God of our forefathers, the Good Book, The Israelites, the longest journey begins with the first step, the Lord rewarded me, the Lord's generous hand, the one and only true living God, the order of the day, turning back to God, ungodliness, unrest, unrighteousness, warmongering, Wednesday Wail
Psalm 18:20. The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands hath he recompensed me.
Ah friends, not a day seems to pass without some sort of bad news in our world eh? The latest is the hurricane Irma, that’s begun raising Cain in the West Indies yesterday, blowing it’s powerful Category 5 self over Antigua and Barbuda and apparently heading for other islands in the northern end of the archipelago.
And if it doesn’t change its trajectory, it will most likely hit the eastern side of the North American mainland by the weekend. After the ravages of hurricane Harvey in the past couple of weeks, it would be total chaos if Irma were to hit the mainland.
This calls for very serious prayer my people, the most powerful force on the earth. It also calls for repentance and turning back to God. Who knows why all these natural disasters are occurring at this time eh? Maybe it’s a warning? God might just be trying to get our attention. But even if it is not, there’s no harm in erring on the right side of the equation?
And it’s no secret that our society is as sinful and ungodly as it’s ever been, and in a serious negative free fall, what with all the strife and unrest between the powerful nations of the world. We can certainly use some respite from all the posturing and warmongering…and only sincere prayer and repentance can bring that about.
It won’t, and it can’t happen overnight, but we’ve got to make a start. As the Chinese proverb says: ‘The longest journey begins with the first step.’
My people, it’s time we took that first step in returning to worshipping the God of our forefathers, bringing God back into our homes, schools, public places and all areas of our society, because that is the only way that we will survive.
The Good Book shows where the Lord brought serious adversity on His chosen people, Israel, when they were disobedient and turned to idol worship. But when they repented and turned back to Him, He took them back with LOVING arms, because that’s the kind of God He is; the God of second chances.
So if the Israelites were smart enough to realize their error, why can’t we be too eh? We’re supposed to be so much wiser and more educated and affluent and have a higher standard of living. But that’s possibly the problem right there; we think we know too much, and in reality we don’t know anything.
Anyway, a word of warning to the wise; let’s pray, let’s sincerely repent and get back to worshipping the One and Only True Living God, He of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. That’s the wisest thing we can do right now.
And our Bit certainly points us in that direction. ‘The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands hath he recompensed me.’
Yeh mih people, it’s no secret, the Lord rewards us when we do right, when we live righteously. And by no stretch of the imagination can we say that our world is in a righteous mode right now. In fact unrighteousness is the order of the day!
Bruh David was a man like all of us, he did his fair share of wrong and suffered his fair share of adversity too, but he knew where his strength came from, on which side his bread was buttered, so he stuck with the Lord God of Israel, who wrought mighty deeds through him.
Just check out this example. When Bruh David had a chance to kill his archenemy Saul in the wilderness, he refused to do it, because Saul was the Lord’s anointed. (1 Sam.24:1-15) And after Bruh David talked to Saul about the situation, the ole reprobate Saul, said, ‘Is this thy voice, my son David? And Saul lifted up his voice and wept.
And he said to David, Thou art more righteous than I: for thou hast rewarded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee evil. And thou hast showed this day how thou hast dealt well with me: forasmuch as when the Lord had delivered me into thine hand, thou killedst me not.
For if a man find his enemy, will he let him go well away (get away safely)? Wherefore the Lord reward thee good for that thou hast done unto me this day.’ (1 Sam.24:16-19)
Yeh friends, even the evil Saul knew that the Lord rewards righteousness, so why aren’t we seeking more rewards through our righteousness eh? Our world currently seems to be fixated on the things of evil, of darkness of ungodliness, which can only work to our eventual demise my brethren.
Our job as Christians is to try and prevent that by living for Christ and showing others the way to Him. What say we that we begin doing that seriously now eh, if we want our world to not only survive, but also prosper under the Lord’s generous hand? Our children, and our children’s children are depending on us my brethren. Let’s not fail them.
And if our hearts are right, then we can sincerely declare our Wednesday Wail. ‘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 friends, let’s go out and help others to sincerely declare that nuh, for it is the heartfelt desire of Jesus. Much LOVE!
…as disciples of Jesus…we are to share His LOVE with others…not keep it to ourselves…
07 Apr 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a hot iron, abstain from meat, antidote, apostasy, blasphemed, blasphemy, branded, conscience, depart from the faith, doctrines of devils, eccentricities, evil spoken of, false teaching, fellowship, first world countries, follow their pernicious ways, forbidding to marry, Friday chant, fun, furthering your glorious kingdom, generous help, hypocrisy, hypocrites, in Jesus' name, latter times, licentiousness, lies, moral life, paltry pay, party, partying, Paul, poverty, prayer, predictions, profession of faith, refreshed, rejection of Christianity, relaxation, renewed, rest, robbery, sanctified by God, scarred, seared, seducing spirits, sense of purpose, sincerity, slave wages, snow, standard of living, sufferation, sweatshop work, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, thanksgiving, the spirit, the Truth, the way of truth, the weekend, the wind wailing, the Word of god, Timothy, week of work, wet and windy, white with snow, wonders of nature, working one job, workingman's enthusiasm
2 Peter 2:2. And many shall follow their pernicious (destructive) ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of (blasphemed).
Oh friends, we constantly talk about the many wonders of nature, but oftimes forget its eccentricities! And I have a perfect example of that.
Yesterday the rain fell around here all day, and not mere drizzles, but strong, steady showers. I even got caught in it going to and from the heart clinic in afternoon. It just went on and on, with the wind wailing and howling like crazy.
Now at minutes to three this morning, on my way to bed, I opened my front door and looked out to view the situation. It was extremely wet and incredibly windy! However, at minutes after eight, when I finally got up and looked outside…lo and behold, it was white with snow!
Mama Mia! I know I heard something on the T.V about wet snow in the evening, but apparently nothing happened until the early morning hours, and this was a little more than the wet kind. (smile)
But yuh know what? It didn’t kill the workingman’s enthusiasm for the upcoming weekend…not at all! He was still out there in the cold, enthusiastically declaring: ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday and the weekend is here! At long last, our little break from sweatshop work and paltry pay!
A man can’t even afford to really party on the slave wages we make…Steups! But we’ll certainly do our best! And we going to have a rollicking good time in spite of it! Thank God for Fridays and weekends yes!’
Ah mih people, paltry pay is certainly a major factor in our world’s abject poverty today. Even in the supposed first world countries, it’s difficult to have a decent standard of living just working one job, so can you imagine what’s happening in the third and fourth class countries? Hn! Absolute robbery and immense ‘sufferation!’
And the last thing we need is a whole lot of partying and licentiousness. Our focus should be instead on action like what our Friday Chant advises. So let’s chant it out nuh in true sincerity and a strong sense of purpose.
‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Yeh friends, unless we renew and refresh ourselves over the weekend, we’ll be no good for the new week of work. That brings us to our Bit. ‘And many shall follow their pernicious (destructive) ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of (blasphemed).’
Now all of us have encountered some of that false teaching and blasphemy at some stage of our lives, and I reiterate, the only way to counter it is by knowing the Word of God. And you can’t know the Word of God unless you are constantly and faithfully and deeply immersed in it.
Over the last couple of days, we saw what Peter had to say about the false teachers and prophets. Today we’ll get some insight into Bruh Paul’s predictions of apostasy, in his first letter to Timothy.
‘Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing (deceiving) spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron.
Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats (food), which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth. For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving: For it is sanctified (consecrated) by the word of God and prayer.’ (1 Tim.4:1-5)
Yuh see friends, Bruh Paul also knew how evil we’d become in the last days. Now here are some explanations from the scholars.
‘4:1. Expressly means clearly. To depart means to apostatize. Apostasy is the deliberate and permanent rejection of Christianity after previous profession of faith in it. Doctrines of devils, that is doctrines taught by demons.’
‘4:2. Speaking lies in hypocrisy (or, “by the hypocrisy of liars”): The demons of verse 1 expound their doctrines, not directly, but indirectly through such human ministers. These are further described as having their conscience seared with a hot iron, that is branded (scarred) in their conscience.
Permanently defaced, the moral life of these hypocrites is scarred by sin as they carry around the awareness of their guilt, yet continue preaching to others.’
‘4:3. Two examples of demonic doctrines are cited here: (1) prohibition against marriage, and (2) abstaining from certain foods.’
‘4:4. Every creature of God is good (or, “Everything created by God is good”). This substantiates the remark in verse 3 that God created foods to be eaten, not abstained from.’
‘4:5. By divine statements (by the word of God) declaring all foods fit for man, and by the believer’s giving of thanks before meals (by…prayer), food is sanctified. This means food is set apart (reserved) for consumption by Christians.’
So friends, let’s remember today that there are numerous false teachers and doctrines in our world, trying to take us away from following the true Christ, and we need to be very diligent and careful in what and whom we listen to, else we can be very easily led astray. Much LOVE!
…the only antidote for false doctrine and teaching…thorough knowledge of God’s Word…
17 Aug 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: Abraham, ambassadors, and not unto men, as to the Lord, ask for the old paths, celebrate, come unto me, comforted, do it heartily, economic situation, energy, enthusiasm. witnesses, eternal life, evil, Father Abraham, giving thanks, gladden our hearts, go off like a dream, godly ways of our forefathers, good news of Jesus, great invitation, Hades, hate, heathen, heavy laden, I am meek, I will give you rest, injustice, Jesus, joy, labour, Lazarus, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, lowly in heart, Lucifer, Moses, my burden is light, my yoke is easy, parable of the rich man and beggar, peace, prosperity. the ways of God, refuse to walk with God, rejuvenate our spirits, repent, resurrection, reward. inheritance, search the scriptures, singing, stand in the ways and see, standard of living, strife, Sunday, take my yoke upon you, that ye might have life, the Lord's Day, the ways of death, tormented, ungodly world, where is the good way, wisdom, worshipping, you shall find rest for your souls
Jeremiah 16:6. Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.
Oh Friends, neighbours and fellow believers, it’s the best day of the week – Sunday, the Lord’s Day! So let’s celebrate appropriately by going to His sanctuary and worshipping, singing praises and giving thanks with other believers!
Wow! What a blessed day! And if you are too sick or frail to get out, then turn on the tube or the radio and celebrate with others that way. And if by chance you can’t do any of those things, then simply get your Bible out and read it and sing whatever hymns you know and worship with the Holy Spirit and Jesus as your companions.
The important thing is to get some celebratory face time with the Father on this restful day. (smile) But please don’t let the joy and singing and pleasure disappear when you come out of the sanctuary or turn off the TV and radio, because that is when our real work for Christ ought to begin.
Going to the sanctuary, in fact worshipping is also a means to rejuvenate our spirits, gladden our hearts, so that we can spread the joy and good news of Jesus to others. That’s where we’re supposed to get the energy, enthusiasm and whatever else we need to be good witnesses, good ambassadors for Christ.
And as we’ve been saying, it’s also the best way to prepare for that awesome first day of the workweek, Monday. Once you do right, make good preparations on Sunday, Monday will go off like a dream. (smile) And if you don’t believe me, then just try it nuh.
Now let’s continue with our Bit of the last couple days: ‘Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.’
Ah Friends, that is such an important scripture that we do ourselves a great injustice by not paying proper attention to it. History is littered with nations and individuals who refused to pay it the attention it deserved. Please don’t let us and our society be numbered amongst that unfortunate lot nuh.
We all know that when Western society truly had God at the forefront of their lives, it prospered like never before. But now that we’ve foolishly removed God from so many parts of Western life, everything is now on the downslide.
There’s very little peace and LOVE, but lots of hate and strife, while the economic situation is terrible and the standard of living is continually falling. But yet we refuse to return to the godly ways of our forefathers.
Oh my brethren, in the ways of God there’s peace and prosperity, and rest for your souls. Listen to Jesus’ great invitation: ‘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 (gentle) and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt.11:28-30)
Oh my people, how could we ever turn down such a wonderful invitation eh? It’s the epitome of foolishness! But unfortunately, there is a very large number of fools in this evil, ungodly world who refuse to walk with God and accept Jesus’ most awesome invitation. I’m sorry for them, but they’ve made their choice.
This brings us to a scripture in Luke 16, where Jesus is telling the parable of the rich man and the poor beggar Lazarus covered with sores that the dogs licked as he sat at the rich man’s gate, eating the crumbs from the rich man’s table, where a sumptuous meal was laid out every day.
But as the Lord would have it, the rich man died and went to sojourn with Lucifer in Hades, while Lazarus was transported to heaven where he enjoyed Abraham’s company in a messianic feast. We all know the story, where the rich man in severe torment, lifts up his eyes to heaven, sees Lazarus hanging with Abraham.
‘And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.
And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence. Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house: For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.
Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.’ (Luke 16:24-31)
Ah mih people, yuh see how life turns around on the other side, and how those in the nether parts of the world are suffering severe torment? That alone should be enough to make us serious believers. But sadly it doesn’t. As Abraham says, if we won’t listen to Moses and the prophets and Jesus, as I’ll show you in a moment, why would we listen to one coming from the dead eh?
In fact Jesus came from the dead and told us both before and after His resurrection, yet we didn’t believe and refused to walk in the godly paths. Now hear Jesus while talking about His relationship with the Father. ‘Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. And (but) ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.’ (John 5:39-40)
Ah mih people, two thousand years later, mankind is still stupidly refusing to come to Jesus so that they might have life! But we believers are still expected to work at bringing the heathen to our wonderful Lord and Saviour, so let’s not get weary and tired, though the task seems difficult:
‘And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance for ye serve the Lord Christ.’ (Col.3:23-24)
That’s wisdom of the highest order my brethren! So please let’s practice it nuh. Much LOVE!
…there is a way which seemeth right unto a man…but the end thereof are the ways of death… (Prov.14:12)
02 Sep 2013
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: 24/7 society, all ends of the earth, anxious, aura of love, battle hymn, bitter days, bombarded, buffeted, clear as day, confidence, contented, continue fighting, corrupt governments, days of slavery, deaths, don't glory in riches, don't glory in strength, don't glory in wisdom, drunk or sober, economic slavery, enthusiasm, ever increasing profits, every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear, feudalism, fights, forefathers, freedom, further your glorious kingdom, glory hallelujah, glory in the Lord, Granny's advice, hard fought victories, hard won rights, heritage, hold water, holy spirit, human animal, humble servants, in these things I delight, indentured servants, indifference, Jesus Christ, jobs, justice, justified, Labour Day, labour struggles, learn our history, lies, lord god almighty, loving kindness, mind yuh business, Monday Morning, nature of the human animal, no weapon, omnipotent god, owners of capital, poor getting poorer, praise, Praise the Lord, read and spell, rejuvenation of spirit, remuneration, renewed vitality, rich getting richer, righteousness., rise against, sally forth, salvation, satiated, saved, seed of Israel, servants of the lord, shall prosper, shame, slavery, sloth, solidarity, spiritual armour, standard of living, steadfast faith, struggle, take for granted, the word is gone out of my mouth, true wisdom, truth, useful purpose, weary souls, wicked taunts, wiles, worker's rights, world problems, worthwhile inroads
Isaiah 54:17. No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgement thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of (from) me.
Oh Friends, it’s Monday… And a raucous shout of joy rises up. ‘Yeah! Labour Day Monday to boot, which means we don’t have to go to work! Glory Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!’
Yes Friends, it is indeed Labour Day Monday, and many of us don’t have to go out and face the common grind and daily task. But I wonder how many of us ever take the time to reflect and contemplate on how this Labour Day holiday came about? How many of us moreover take the time to look up the chronicles of the serious struggles, fights and deaths that our forefathers suffered to win the rights of workers now enshrined in our society, and which we so casually take for granted?
It didn’t just come about like that nuh. It wasn’t granted out of the goodness of the hearts of the owners of capital. It was a long and hard fought struggle; much blood flowed and many lives were given up for it, from the bitter days of slavery and feudalism, to indentured servants and finally some freedom and worker’s rights that we now enjoy.
But it’s the nature of the human animal to get lazy, contented and satiated after fiercely struggling for something, be it material, spiritual or emotional. Having won it, we then tend to think that’s all there is to the struggle, and we get too comfortable, thus allowing our hard fought victories to slip away through sloth and indifference.
And sadly Friends, that is exactly what’s happening in our society today. Most of us have become so comfortable, we figure nothing or no one can take away our hard won rights. But that’s obviously not true, for if we look around at our societies, our economies and our general standard of living, we’ll see that they all are falling. Good, solid jobs are being lost by the thousands, while wages are being cut and rights inevitably infringed with the help of the corrupt, inept governments that we have elected.
Meanwhile the owners of capital are laughing all the way to the banks, which themselves are laughing all the way to wherever with their ever increasing profits. I don’t know of any company leader who’s worth around 400 times more remuneration than an ordinary worker. But that’s the current standard, and it’s only fulfilling the old adage of the rich getting richer, while the poor get poorer.
Just a word of warning my people. So please let’s get involved, learn our history and continue fighting for those rights that have made our society the best the world has ever seen, cause if we don’t, the greedy, conscience-less owners of capital will drive us right back to economic slavery, while they keep on living high on the backs of our labour.
Now let’s sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn in solidarity with those who have to go out and labour today in our modern 24/7 society. All together, in full voice now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies. But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour.
We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle. Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Ah mih people, let’s hope that raises the adrenalin of our faith to levels where we don’t get too scared and anxious about our individual and world problems, for as true believers we do have the ever-faithful promises of our most omnipotent God to hold on to, as our Bit so admirably demonstrates. ‘No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgement thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of (from) me.’
But as we said yesterday, the operative aspect of that promise is that we must be ‘servants of the Lord,’ otherwise the promise doesn’t hold water. Today though, we’re going to look at the part of our Bit that deals with righteousness, which it tells us comes from God.
Hear Jeremiah: ‘Thus saith the Lord, let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord which exercises LOVING-kindness, judgement (justice), and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the Lord.’ (Jer.9:23-24)
Oh Friends the Lord’s words are as clear as day; we should know, understand and only glory in Him!
Now listen to Isaiah as he revels in the subject. ‘Look (turn) unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear (take an oath).
Surely shall one say (He shall say to me), in the Lord I have righteousness and strength: even to him shall men come; and all that are incensed (angry) against him shall be ashamed. In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory.’ (Is.45:22-25)
Oh Friends, once again the Lord is reading and spelling for us. If we can’t understand and obey, then I don’t know what else to say.
Enjoy your Labour Day, but please remember Granny’s advice, for Lucifer is on the serious prowl: ‘Son, drunk or sober, please mind yuh business.’ Words of true wisdom my brethren! Let’s attain unto it nuh. Much LOVE!
…of a truth…salvation, righteousness and glory…are of the Lord…
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