The Importance of Giving Yourself over to God’s Ways…and then Delighting in them!

10 Oct 2024 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 37:4-5.       Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him, and he shall bring it to pass.

And believe it or not, it’s Thursday, the second to last day of our work week. I don’t know if I’m happy or sad that the days seem to be passing by so quickly. The problem might just be that the older you get the fewer your days on God’s good earth become, and you get anxious that you’ve not done as much as you wanted to do, or more importantly, the things you’ve desired to do. And right now, that’s somewhat true for me, because there are several things I haven’t yet done that I greatly desire to do. 

When you’re twenty odd, you easily envision many more days alive and kicking, but at the ripe ole age of seventy odd, you know that the clock’s ticking and your days are not that many. But then again, when you trust God wholeheartedly, you’re not supposed to be worried or anxious about anything, for the Bible tells us, in the words of Bruh David from Psalm 37 – titled Trust in the Lord: ‘Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him, and he shall bring it to pass.’ (Ps. 37:4-5) 

And what does it mean to delight thyself in the Lord? Here’s a short and simple answer from this commentary. ‘To “delight in the Lord” is to enjoy all the blessings found in Him, because they are from Him, not merely because they are to our benefit. It’s often said that the person who delights in the Lord values the Giver more highly than His gifts.’ Now that’s an attitude we should surely have towards our God; appreciating and valuing Him for what and who He is, than merely for what He can do for us in terms of worldly needs. 

It’s also something we should be seriously pursuing in our daily lives with other people; valuing them more as God’s people, our brothers and sisters in Christ, rather than merely thinking of them in terms of what they can do for us. And that brings us right back to what we’re talking about; foregoing all the selfishness, greed and deceit that our world today teaches as a way of life, and committing to God’s way, which is the exact opposite. (smile) 

Meanwhile, this other commentary shows delighting in God in a different light. It asks, ‘What is the biblical meaning of delight?’ And answers: ‘The word delight means “to gain great pleasure, satisfaction, and happiness.” Additionally, another meaning of the Hebrew word for delight is “to be soft, tender.” I think LOVERS of God are those who are soft and tender toward Him, always teachable, always pliable in His hands.’ 

That’s also true. We need to be like putty in God’s hands, obedient, and committing our ways to Him, meaning ‘invite the Lord to examine our desires and intentions—and change whatever does not fit his purpose or advance his plan for our life.’ And we wonder why God delighted in Bruh David with all of his abominable behaviour. Because he had a repentant, reverent, grateful and devoted heart. 

And we can see that from the words of this commentary. ‘Because of his knowledge of God, David refrained from killing Saul when he had the opportunity, content to wait for God to act in his perfect timing. David demonstrated delight in God through his obedience and praise to God despite his difficult circumstances.’ 

Ah friends, if only we could be so trusting and obedient. That doesn’t mean we won’t do wrong, but when we realize, it we turn asap to God and confess and repent of it. That’s what Bruh David did, and the Lord still considered him a friend and a man after His own heart. The whole point of delighting in God, and committing our ways to Him, is encouraging and challenging us to seek intimacy with God every day. And the greater the intimacy, the greater the obedience and the greater the blessing! 

It’s all a part of God’s great plan for us to commune continuously and deeply with Him. It’s one of the reasons He created us. So when we don’t seek to get close to God, then we’re losing out, missing a whole set of wonderful blessings and interesting adventures and situations. Now, they won’t always be a Sunday walk in the park, (smile) but they’ll surely brighten up your life and make you stronger; physically, spiritually and emotionally, in other words, more like Jesus. 

Now listen to this scripture from Isaiah, where he’s talking to the people about honouring the Sabbath. ‘If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shall honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places (hills) of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.’ (Is. 58:13-14) 

Yes my fellow believers, if we choose the Lord’s way, rather than ours, He will rain down blessings on us in such abundance that we won’t be able to handle them. But unfortunately, too many of us are following the foolish dictates of the world, to basically go against everything that God stands for. No wonder our world is filled with man-made chaos and natural disasters. So what are we going to do about this undesirable situation eh? The answer lies in our hands my fellow saints, and the Lord has most generously given us the tools to handle it. We call them our Thursday Blessings. So let’s declare (chuh!!!) them right now, so that they can be activated in our lives. 

As one strong and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! 

I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’ 

And having made that declaration (yesss!!!) it now behooves us to go out and use those blessings for the benefit of others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us! Much LOVE!

…delighting in our wonderful God…is the essence of our faith…

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit 14 February 2020 John 10:10.

14 Feb 2020 Leave a comment

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

John 10:10.    ​The thief (Satan) cometh not but for (except) to steal, and to kill, and to destroy; I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
 

 

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!

Happy  Valentine’s Day, my Scrip-Bit friends and family! It’s the Day of LOVE, or LOVE Day as celebrated by the world for consumerism purposes, to further enrich the coffers of the already wealthy! And yes, we know that a lot of it is not true LOVE, but once it has to do with treating people better, offering gifts and tender, compassionate feelings, then we ought to embrace it, especially since this is the ONLY day in the year truly dedicated to showing LOVING feelings. (smile) 

The flowers and the cards and the chocolates and other gifts will be rushing out of the stores today – I’ve got mine already – and the smiles on the owners faces will be huge as they hear those cash registers ring and ring – chhhring …chhhring…! But although it’s so commercialized, we still have to hold on to it, because it is a form of spreading LOVE…God’s most important character trait! 

And what better day for it to fall on than a Friday, when people are normally overjoyed to see their work week wind down and their time become their own for a couple of days. And no one is as enthused as the ordinary workingman, so let’s hear what he has to say nuh. And we can always depend on him for an interesting word, as he declares (yeah!): 

‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday oui! The week wasn’t too bad, as I’m learning my limitations, and not stressing out mihself on the work like before. Yeah! And is also Valentine’s Day to boot. A good weekend that! Going to get a baby-sitter for the children and take the wife out to dinner and a movie! I’ve already lavished her with flowers and chocolates! 

Valentine’s Day is one of our special times because that’s the day we had our first kiss, oh so long ago, behind the barn on her father’s farm out in the country! I could remember it like it was yesterday…one of the most tender moments we’ve ever shared. And I know she’s looking forward to this weekend, just like I am! Brother! We going to make some more good memories to add to those we already have! Mama Yo! Thank God for Fridays, weekends and Valentine’s Day yes!’  

Now don’t you just adore the workingman’s simple joy and enthusiasm? I certainly do! Perhaps that’s because I’m merely a simple workingman my self. (smile) But that’s what life is about friends, making good, godly memories with those we LOVE and care for. 

Remember Jesus’ immortal words regarding the sheep of His pasture, His followers: ‘The thief (Satan) cometh not but for (except) to steal, and to kill, and to destroy; I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.’ Glory be mih people! 

That means that Jesus didn’t come to earth to die, to sacrifice his sinless self so that we could live, miserable, unhappy lives. No way Jose! He came that we could enjoy life while doing His bidding! What’s the point of Him atoning for our sins and giving us His righteousness, and reconciling us to the Father and making us One with Him, if we had to be miserable and downtrodden doing it eh? We were already doing that before He came, so why come for us to do the same thing eh? 

And as Sister Joyce (Joyce Meyer) says, that’s why she calls her television programme ‘Enjoying Everyday Life,’ because that’s why Christ came to earth, so that He could release us from the bondage of sin and have down here on earth, a good, healthy and happy relationship with each other and ultimately the Father! 

Yuh see how all yuh get me carried away there! (smile) That’s because I hate to see miserable, slobbering, poe (poor) me one, like they on their last breath, no belly and backbone people calling themselves Christians! We have ALL the best blessings of God, like we declared in our Thursday Blessings yesterday, so why should we go around tired looking, fearful and miserable eh? 

We’re supposed to be the happiest, most joyful and most powerful people on the planet, because our heavenly father is the Creator of the Universe and the most important and powerful person therein! So please my fellow believers, let’s cut out this struggling appearance that we portray to the world nuh. Tell me, if Jesus had come to you with our poor me one attitude and a life of constant struggle and poverty, would you have embraced it and or Him? Definitely not! 

Likewise if we bring that kind of attitude to our fellow man as that which Jesus desires of His followers, you expect them to accept it? Not on yuh life! So it’s time we not only stand up strong in Christ, but also LOOK STRONG, for remember the world judges so much on outward appearance and we won’t ever entice them to have a look at Jesus if we look poor and downtrodden. As Uncle Charles (Charles Stanley ) likes to say: When you go out to represent Jesus, you must look your best, be your best and do your best! It couldn’t be any clearer or wiser than that friends! (smile) 

And no, I haven’t forgotten our Friday Chant, it’s just that you all threw me a curved ball about our less than appropriate way of living everyday life that led me into the unavoidable spiel… (smile) But that’s okay. I guess it needed to be said, to remind us of the privileged people we are, and that we ought to show it in our lifestyle. 

So all together now, let’s chant: ‘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, we need to have our wits about us, but that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy ourselves, once we stay within certain boundaries as outlined by Jesus. And contrary to popular opinion, there’s a lot of leeway in His rules and regulations, (smile) we just like to overdo it. We’re not happy unless we’re overdoing it. I guess that’s our natural sinful nature showing up there. Anyway, please have a Happy Valentine’s Day, spread the LOVE, the true LOVE, AGAPE LOVE, like Jesus wants and all will be fine! Much LOVE!

…what’s a day of LOVE…without joyful feelings ruling the roost…and the author of LOVE being celebrated…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 13 May 2017 Matthew 25:35.

13 May 2017 Leave a comment

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

Matthew 25:35.    For I was an hungered (hungry), and ye gave me meat (food): I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in.

Ah mih people, our favourite lazy day, Saturday, is here at last! God bless Saturdays! And I see some big smiles and hear some sweet sighs as we just plan on lazing through Saturday, doing as little as possible. 

But don’t worry, that’s your entitlement. You are allowed at least one day each week to just commune with yourself and your Maker, while just rolling along with the tumbling tumbleweeds. (smile) 

So as we laze along this blessed Saturday morn, let’s check out some of our friend Anselm’s quotes for this week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. I like this week’s quotes because they are simple and practical. 

Hear this first one: ‘It’s supposed to be hard. If it were easy, everyone would do it.’ Now isn’t that the very truth? It surely is, because in these whatever you may call them times, nobody wants to do anything that’s difficult. Easy living is the name of the game! 

And that goes for our Christian faith too. As soon as a lot of believers’ come upon adversity, they are quick to think about giving up. They don’t realize that it’s the adversity that builds our faith. And that’s why our standards are continually falling.  

And the second quote says: ‘How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because someday in your life you will have been all of these.’ Oh so true my people! It’s just another way of warning us that we’ll reap what we sow, and we need to treat others the way we want to be treated. 

This next one sounds like something Granny would say: ‘As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.’ Ah friends, where has that sense of purpose, that commitment to helping others gone eh? 

Nowadays it’s predominantly each man for himself, and let the other one get by as best he can. I remember the days when the world wasn’t as prosperous, but there also wasn’t as much hunger and poverty, for we shared whatever little we had with the unfortunates. But today, in a world filled with plenty, hunger and poverty are rampant, pandemic to say the least. 

Steups! The Lord must look down from His high heaven and sadly shake His head sometimes, asking Himself, just where did He go wrong. But it wasn’t Him that went wrong it was us, we had too much free will and evil had a stronger pull on us than good. 

But hopefully this last quote will help us. ‘Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.’ It’s as simple as that friends, we can’t do better until we know how to do better. So I guess our quest now is to learn how to do better. 

And I have to laugh here at the philosophical stuff than Anselm’s quotes bring out every week. But it does the soul a lot of good, gets us thinking a little more than we normally might. It also brings us to our Bit, Jesus immortal words on the topic. 

‘For I was an hungered (hungry), and ye gave me meat (food): I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in. Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.’ (Matt.25:35-36) 

Yeh friends, that’s the kind of stuff that Jesus is looking for from His followers. If we do those things, then when Jesus comes into His kingdom, we’ll be like the sheep, on His right hand, and not goats on His left. ‘Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.’ (Matt.25:34) 

Oh my brethren, we seem to forget that Jesus came to save the lost, the sick, the hungry, the poor; in other words, those who were having a hard time making it in life. If we go back to Isaiah, where he describes true religion, we’ll see where the Lord rags on Israel for their hypocritical fasting in the first 5 verses of chapter 58. 

Then He says: ‘Is not this the fast that I have chosen? To loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? Is it not to deal (share) thy bread to (with) the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out (wandering) to thy house? 

When thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh? Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health (healing) shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee: the glory of the Lord shall be thy rearward ( rearguard). 

Then shalt thou call, and the Lord will answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of these the yoke, the putting forth (pointing) of the finger, and speaking vanity (wickedness).’ (Is.58:6-9) 

Oh friends, that’s what true religion is supposed to be about, not the hypocritical rules and regulations that pass for it today. And you’ll see that it’s not only when Jesus came that caring for the poor and downtrodden became a part of our faith. 

So let’s get serious about what we’ve said here this morning nuh, and try to do what we know is right, so that at the coming of Jesus’ kingdom, we’ll end up on His right hand and be called blessed. Much LOVE!

…unless we sincerely try to help others…we can’t truly say…we have a heart for Jesus…