The Overwhelming Importance of Believers Being Prepared for Jesus’ Sudden Return!

30 Jun 2025 Leave a comment

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

Matthew 25:13.        ‘Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.’

One more time on the merry-go round called our work week my beauties! We cannot get away from Monday, no matter how hard we try, so it’s best we stop trying and rather embrace it like a good and stalworth friend. (smile) Otherwise it will just frustrate us for all of our working lives. And what a waste of a good life that would be! So all God’s people said a loud and frustrated ‘Amen!’ Yes, it’s best we just grab the bull by the horns and get on with it, or the bull will action us with his horns instead. And we all know that’s a very negative situation, which we want to avoid at all costs.

But all of what we just said there doesn’t come easily, no, it requires a few things of us. The first is a good work ethic, simply knowing that we must work to earn a living, so we just make up our minds to do it without complaining, because complaining will make no real difference, except to make us miserable. But then that calls for self-discipline and self-control, two things that are very difficult to come by in this age of avarice and entitlement.

We must learn to prepare for Monday, just like we do for the other days of the week, not just party or laze the weekend away. And in all of that there’s a call for some decent physical rest, as well as spiritual renewal, meaning church and fellowship time with other believers, for we cannot handle Monday properly unless we’re filled with new vim and vitality.

And right now, let’s be thankful that it’s summer time and many people are on vacation, so the traffic jams are not as deadly, neither do we have to be wading through the snow and sludge to get to work. That is also something we cannot avoid if we live in the northern climes, but we have a few months of reprieve still to go. But let’s also note that this is the 30th day of June, meaning that it’s now done like dinner, (smile) and the summer months will pass quicker than we realize, so please, let’s grab the baton and run with it like crazy! End of sermon!

And I guess all of that leads us to the topic of preparedness. And what do the scriptures have to say about that? They offer various teachings in both spiritual readiness and practical foresight. Let’s check out a few nuh. And this first one deals with practical foresight. It tells of when Bruh David wanted to build a temple for God, but God nixed the idea because of the great amount of blood he’d shed and said that his son Cousin Sol would build the temple.

However the Bible tells us that Bruh David began collecting supplies for the building of the temple. ‘And David said, Solomon my son is young and tender, and the house that is to be builded for the Lord must be exceeding magnifical, of fame, and of glory throughout all countries: I will therefore now make preparation for it. So David prepared abundantly before his death.’ (1 Chr. 22:5) Yes friends, that’s how we ought to prepare for Mondays! (smile)  

And here’s another interesting scripture highlighting practical foresight; this from Cousin Sol in Proverbs. He writes: ‘A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished.’ (Prov. 22:3) In other words: ‘A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.’ 

Then there are scriptures on spiritual preparedness, like this poignant warning from Christ where He’s talking about no one knowing the day nor the hour when He returns, except the Father. ‘Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord will come. But know this, that if the goodman (master) of the house had known in what watch (hour) the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered (allowed) his house to be broken up (into). Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.’ (Matt. 24:42-44)

Yes my brethren, we need to always be prepared and watching for whenever Jesus returns, for if He catches us with our pants down around our knees, then crapaud smoke we pipe! And He considered our readiness so important that He repeated it later on in the parable of the Ten Virgins: ‘Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.’ (Matt. 25:13)Oh friends, there’s no more important preparedness for us believers than that!

And I like how Luke writes it. ‘Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged (be weighed down) with surfeiting (carousing), and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.’ (Luke 21:33-36)

Now those are powerful words of warning my people, so please let’s pay close heed to them. And to help us do that, let’s go to the throne of grace through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn seeking divine aid for all that ails us. Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.

Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.

Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us 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!’ 

Now, please note what our prayer says we need to do to receive divine aid; turn from our evil ways, humble ourselves, pray and sincerely seek God face.  The ball is now in our court! Much LOVE!

…a word to the wise is sufficient…

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   16 May 2022 Luke 21:34.

16 May 2022 Leave a comment

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

Luke 21:34.       And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged (weighed down) with surfeiting (carousing), and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.

And a voice cried out: ‘Woe is me. It’s Monday!’ And I asked, ‘Why is that?’ And the voice cried out: ‘Because I am not ready to face Monday.’ And again, I asked, ‘Why is that?’ And the voice answered: ‘Because I am sick and tired from all the partying I did this weekend.’ ‘Now that wasn’t very wise, was it?’ I commented. ‘I guess not,’ the voice replied. ‘But now, on a rainy Monday morning to boot, I have to get up and face the stupid traffic to get to a lousy job that I don’t even like.’

 ‘Well then find another one you like,’ I advised. ‘No, that won’t do,’ the voice declared. ‘Why not?’ was my question. ‘Because it pays good and it’s an easy job to do.’ ‘Then you should say praise the Lord and be happy that you even have a job, much less an easy one that pays well,’ I admonished. ‘Millions of people out there don’t even have a job, and don’t know when they’ll get one. Meanwhile, you’re sniffling like a spoiled brat, when you have it so good!’ 

‘And just for your information, if you’ll cut down on the foolish partying on the weekend, go to church on Sundays, so that you can get your spirit renewed and revitalized, and have fellowship with your fellow believers, then you’ll be able to face Monday with a gung-ho attitude, instead of this whiffling one you now have. End of story!’ 

Oh friends, the first step in success of any kind is proper preparation! If you’re not prepared as best you can for a situation, you’ll never be able to face it properly, much less overcome it. Granted, in some cases you can only prepare so much, but we always need to put in as much prep time as possible in whatever we do. Case in point, the voice above there that didn’t prepare to meet Monday. And I daresay that many of us are like that, we dread Mondays because we are not well prepared to meet it. We don’t get enough rest and revitalization of soul and spirit, so we can be confident and meet the day with a good attitude. 

Too many of us are rushing on Monday mornings to get things done that could have been easily and unhurriedly done on Sunday evening, but for whatever reason, we leave them for the last minute, and then wonder why our lives are so rushed and frustrated. And there are many scriptures which warn us of preparedness. So, let’s look at a few nuh. 

These first two come directly from Jesus. After telling the disciples about His coming again, the exact time that only the Father knows, He tells them to watch and pray. ‘And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged (weighed down) with surfeiting (carousing), and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.’ (Luke 21:34) 

And unfortunately, that is what many of us are doing; being too taken up with the things of this world and not preparing ourselves for Christ’s imminent return. Remember, it’s going to come like a thief in the night, and if we’re not prepared for it, then hellfire and damnation, here we come. Then, as was Jesus’ style, He told the parable of the ten virgins invited to the bridegroom’s feast. (Matt. 25:1-13) 

Five of them were wise and took extra oil for their lamps, just in case the bridegroom was tardy and did not show up on time. But the other foolish five did not take extra oil. And the truth be known, the bridegroom was late and the last five ran out of oil and had to go then and buy more. However, by the time they returned, the doors were locked and they could not get in. That’s what will happen to those of us who don’t accept Jesus as Lord and Saviour before he comes back; we’ll be locked out of heaven. 

Jesus said: ‘Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.’ (Matt. 25:13) And that’s the gospel truth friends! We don’t know exactly when Christ will return, but return He must, and thus we must be prepared for it to happen at any time. 

And Bruh Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, also warned about being prepared, but this time for temptation. ‘Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles (evil schemes) of the devil…. Wherefore take unto you (take up) the whole armour of God, that ye might be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.’ (Eph.6:10, 12) 

Oh my people, the only way we can fight successfully in the spiritual battle the enemy is waging against us, is to be prepared, by having on the spiritual armour of God. And we all know that entails: the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit which is God’s Word. Then you wrap all of that up with prayer and supplication. Only if we are thus prepared can we stand strong and steadfast against the enemy, my fellow saints! 

And I like this last warning about preparation from Cousin Sol in Proverbs, where he wisely advises. ‘Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways and be wise: which having no guide (leader) overseer, or ruler, Provideth her meat (food) in the summer, and gathereth her food to harvest. How long wilt thou sleep (lie down), O sluggard? When wilt thou arise out of thy sleep? Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: So shall thy poverty come as one that traveleth (a prowler), and thy want (need) as an armed man.’  (Prov. 6:6-11) 

Ah friends, truer words were never spoken. The sluggard or the habitually lazy person will suffer want eventually, if he doesn’t; get up and get busy, like the ants, who have no ruler or leader but have enough common sense to gather food in the summer and store it for the winter, when there’s little, or none available. It’s all about being prepared for circumstances as best we can friends, be they predictable or unpredictable, like Christ’s Second coming, temptation, poverty, and starvation. 

And the first step in it all is prayer. So, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, let’s go right now to the throne room of grace in confidence, and ask for heavenly help. As one voice: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. We desperately need Your divine help, for You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems. 

Heavenly Father, we admit that we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but we know that You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has 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 wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems. 

And Father, we pray that you will ease the pain of the many who are suffering from negative situations. 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!’ 

Now let’s not forget that our God doesn’t suffer fools kindly, so if we make a promise, we had better keep it. Much LOVE!

…wisdom dictates…be always as ready as you can be… 

 Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8​     

Today’s Scrip-Bit 11 March 2017 Luke 21:34.

11 Mar 2017 Leave a comment

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

Luke 21:34.   And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged (weighed down) with surfeiting (carousing), and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.

Aye mih people, how all yuh doing this cold winter’s morn eh? The ole fella’s feeling a bit under the weather this morning, seems like I’m getting a cold or something of the sort. But not to worry, for the Lord is bearing me up, as He faithfully promised in His word, and I’m soon going to get into the full swing of things and begin writing the Bit like a champion. (smile) 

Ah friends, how could I not LOVE the Lord eh after all the faithfulness and LOVING-kindness He’s shown me over the years? I come to write, and I don’t know what to write, and He leads and guides me. I come to write, and I’m not feeling up to scratch, and He uplifts me, gives the wherewithal to do His bidding. 

Consequently my heart rejoices and my lips offer Him much thanks and praise, for He is a most wonderful God! Amen! So now that I’m uplifted, (smile) let’s get on with writing the Bit nuh. And since today is Saturday, we’ll look at a couple of quotes from our friend Anselm, who aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. 

The first one is fairly long, and says: ‘Time is an equal opportunity employer. Each human being has exactly the same number of hours and minutes every day. Rich people can’t buy more hours. Scientists can’t invent new minutes. And you can’t save time to spend it on another day. Even so, time is amazingly fair and forgiving. No matter how much time you’ve wasted in the past, you still have an entire tomorrow.’ 

Now all of that is quite true, but the problem is, how many more tomorrows do we have eh? Moses in his only Psalm, Psalm 90 – From everlasting to everlasting thou art God – pleaded with the Lord: ‘So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom (gain a heart of wisdom). (Ps.90:12) 

Yes my fellow believers, none of us know when we’ll depart this earth, so we have to use our time wisely. That’s why we have to do what the second quote advises. ‘Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work.’ 

Ah friends, we can’t afford to be like amateurs and sit on our fat fannies and wait for inspiration. We just have to get up and do whatever needs doing! That’s the only way to make a positive difference in our world and also enjoy our tomorrows, regardless of how many we have left. And that segues very nicely into out Bit; Jesus warning re His Second Coming, and the way we should not live our lives. 

‘And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged (weighed down) with surfeiting (carousing), and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.’ 

That means we ought always to be prepared, be ready for whenever He returns, be it today tomorrow or many years hence. The important thing to remember here friends, is that Our Lord and Saviour will one day come back as the Warrior King, on His white charger, breathing fire and ready to exterminate the evil doers. 

That we know for a fact, but we just don’t know when. And since it could be at any time, we can’t afford to be caught with our knickers down at our feet. (smile) So we cannot live a licentious lifestyle and be caught unawares, either by our passing, or His return, for then there will be no further opportunity to make amends and plead for forgiveness. 

Now yesterday we saw where Bruh Paul told the Thessalonians that the Lord’s return might come like a thief in the night (1 Thess.5:2) Today we’ll continue his message. ‘But ye brethren are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. But ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober (self-controlled). 

For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and LOVE; and for a helmet, the hope of salvation. 

For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him. Wherefore comfort yourselves together (encourage each other), and edify (build up) one another, even as also ye do (are doing).’ (1 Thess.5: 4-11) 

There we have it friends, straight from the mouth of Bruh Paul! We are not children of darkness but of light, and as such ought to live sober and self-controlled lives, watching out for Jesus’ return. And if we do that, then we won’t be affected by the trials and tribulations, the agony that the wicked, the children of darkness will suffer on the Lord’s Day. 

As true believers, we will be spared the Lord’s wrath. So let’s be sensible and wisely redeem whatever time we have left nuh mih breddren, for that time could be up at any second, without any warning. Much LOVE! 

…either your last breath…or Jesus’ return…can spell the end of your time…so please be prepared…