The Overwhelming Importance for Christians to Increase Intimacy with God and thus Enjoy the Full Benefits of Their Faith!

21 Mar 2026 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 16:11.          ‘Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand are pleasures for ever more.’

Oh boy! At last it’s our lazy-day Saturday, where most of us can do whatever we desire without any serious consequences. And isn’t it good to know, that if only for one day, you are master of your own destiny? (smile) You can laze, sleep, eat, read, do whatever, at least for a short while, without answering to a surly boss, except maybe your spouse. (smile) But it’s certainly good to be free from the clutches of a demanding job. However, before we get too comfortable, let’s offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer with all sincerity and truth.

As one strong voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’ 

And friends, I can never get over the feeling of peace and calm that envelops me when I sincerely pray that prayer. That’s because the Lord relishes the fact that we choose to get intimate with Him, for that’s one of the reasons He created us in the first place…to LOVE and be LOVED in return. And there’s nothing that warms the cockles of His heart like when we come to Him with sincere LOVE in our hearts, just seeking to get closer to Him, not asking for anything else but His warm and wonderful presence.

The problem though is that too few of us believers do that. When most of us go to God, it’s always to ask for some material thing, not to simply be with Him. And that’s why many of us don’t get the full benefit of being a believer, because as Bruh David says in Psalm 16 – A Plea for God’s Protection: ‘Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand are pleasures for ever more.’ (Ps. 16:11) Yes friends, it’s only when we get really intimate with God, that we truly see and thus enjoy the fullness of the life He’s prepared for us.

And that’s why Jesus said: ‘Enter ye in at the strait (narrow) gate: for wide is the gate and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate (how narrow is the gate, and narrow (difficult or confined) is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.’ (Matt. 7:13-14) Yuh better believe it my people; the good life is hard to find because it doesn’t allow plenty wandering, and mankind, by nature, is a wanderer.

So to find the good, true and joyful earthly life, that leads to salvation and eternal life, one has to stay close to God. And Jesus said it very clearly when He spoke thus to the disciples. ‘Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.’ (John 15:4-5)

Now that’s telling it like it is! Without Jesus in our lives we can do nothing truly worthwhile! So why aren’t many more of us anxiously scrambling to be with him eh? Possibly because it’s too difficult to stay on the straight and narrow path, and we are much more comfortable on the broad and winding way of the world, enjoying the material things it has to offer. But friends, the Lord can give us more than anyone else can, because as Bruh David says in Psalm 24: ‘The earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof; the world and they that dwell therein.’ (Ps. 24:1)

Yes, everything and everyone in the world belongs to God: ‘For he hath founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the floods (rivers).’ (Ps. 24:2) And furthermore, as Moses wisely informed the Jewish people: ‘But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.’ (Deut. 8:18) So, which ever way you look at it, everything comes from God; the Creator and Controller of the universe.

And as this commentary tells us: ‘Based on Deuteronomy 8:18, God gives the power, ability, and wisdom to create wealth, not just the money directly. This power enables individuals to establish His covenant and bless others, rather than for selfish gain. Remembering the Lord is essential to accessing this ability, which promotes humility over personal grind.’ And we had better pay close heed to that last sentence, for if we don’t remember the Lord we will certainly be lacking in power to get wealth.

Oh my people, what we need to realize is that you don’t only get wealth by running it down, or by hobnobbing with Beelzebub and his evil cronies. No, the best way to get wealth is turn to God; sell your soul to Him instead of to Satan, for whatever Satan has, also comes from God the Creator. Let’s never forget, that like us, Satan and all those who rebelled against God are also created creatures, and when God is ready, He will extinguish their lights.

And for your information, there are many wealthy Christians, but you will hardly notice them, because they don’t boast of their earthly wealth, but instead quietly use it to support God’s kingdom on earth. And therein lies the real difference between those who possess earthly wealth; some boast of it, while others quietly use it for the good of others. Let’s hope that we too will not boast about whatever we may possess, because in the long run it all belongs to God, and we are only stewards or managers of it down here on earth, and like good stewards, let’s use it to support God’s earthly kingdom! Much LOVE!

… without God, his Creator…mankind is of little use…

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   16 April 2024 Psalm 118:24.

16 Apr 2024 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 118:24.       This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.

Then it was Tuesday, and another uncomfortable, disturbing Monday has been flung into the dustbin of History! There’s also no doubt that spring has seriously sprung now! Yes! We had some good showers in the mornings over the weekend, but by afternoon the sun had come out strong and vibrant, actually spreading some warmth, and yesterday was a particularly beautiful spring day, despite it being Monday. (smile) Today is supposed to be another of those beautiful days with temps in the high teens. 

So let’s be grateful and thank our great God for all the blessings He’s bestowing on us, by gratefully declaring (yesss!!!): ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.’ (Ps. 118:24) And while we’re at it, why don’t we declare a few more very useful acclamations, like: ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.’ (Phil. 4:13) And what about this most useful one: ‘If God be for me, who can be against me? NOBODY!’ (Rom. 8:31) 

Then there’s this non scriptural acclamation, but every bit as true: ‘Friends show their LOVE in times of trouble, not in happiness.’ (Euripides) And that’s the gospel truth! Oh how much better our world would be if supposed friends would show up in times of trouble and help, instead of running away like scared chickens! Next up is this wonderful acclamation first proclaimed by Joshua. ‘As for me and my house, we WILL follow the Lord; that’s for sure!’ (Josh. 24:15) 

Now what about this gem: ‘And the God of all grace, who has called me to his eternal glory in Christ after I have suffered a little while, will Himself restore me and make me strong, firm and steadfast. Glory to God!’ (1 Pet. 5:10) Now that one is a bit long and somewhat tough to master both in memory and deed, but if we can ever get it right in our hearts and souls, our lives will be much better attuned to the vagaries and eccentricities of this world, because we’ll know without a doubt, that whatever comes against us is only for a time, and that our great God, will, in His time, restore us to the fullness of life in Christ Jesus. 

Unfortunately though, a lot of people turn up their noses at acclamations, but that’s just the foolishness of man, because when we acclaim the scriptures or anything that is good and true, we reinforce the goodness and strength of God within ourselves, so when tragedy or trouble strike, we have enough confidence in our system to allow us to handle it with a good, Christ-like attitude. Finally, there’s this acclamation that sister Joyce (Joyce Meyer) likes to say: ‘Something good is going to happen TO me today! Something good is going to happen THROUGH me today!’ 

And that’s exactly how it ought to be my brethren! Good things happen to us, and good things happen through us, for that’s the will of God. He delights in working through His wonderful followers. That’s why Jesus kept telling us to LOVE each other, for LOVE is of God. And if we’re showing true, brotherly LOVE to one another, then we’re behaving like God, and that’s what it’s all about…behaving like Christ as much as possible. And with our world in a sad and sorry state of strife, war, greed, hunger, poverty, sickness and natural disasters, we desperately need Christians to step up to the plate and be the salt of the earth and light of the world that Jesus expects us to be. 

Oh my fellow believers, no one else is going to change our disastrous world if we don’t. Please, let’s understand that. Change, or rather positive and productive change will only come if we supposed Christians get up off of our lazy, comfortable, entitled fannies and do the work necessary to bring about positive change. We’ve got to stop the plentiful talking for which we’re so famous, and instead become serious and sincere action figures, who are getting things done, like Christ desires! 

It’s sad to see our world degenerating, deteriorating more and more with each passing day. For every day we hear about a new theatre of strife, and none of the old ones are closed, as well as starvation and sickness somewhere else in our world of plenty. What’s wrong with us eh? And the sad part is that many of our leaders who are promulgating the negative stuff claim to be believers in Christ Jesus, to be Christians. But how can we reconcile their warlike and evil actions with a supposed Christian nature eh? No way! 

The trouble also stems from the fact that too many of us believers claim we can’t do anything about the worldwide situation, and that might be true to a certain extent, but what about electing true God-fearing leaders eh? And what about the negative situations right in our own neighbourhoods? Now don’t tell me that there aren’t any, because there are oodles of fixable problems in each and every neighbourhood, which Christians could be helping to alleviate, if we so desire, and thus making our little part of the world better. But, with our sad attitude of indifference, we all sit and wait for someone else to fix the problems. 

However, what did some wise someone once say. If we want peace, let it begin with me. Yes friends, anything we truly desire has to begin with us! We each have to develop the habits of movers and shakers in our own areas, if we ever expect to see positive change. And we don’t have to start with big changes, small ones will do. For as my Jamaican people tell us: one one cocoa full basket. And it certainly does. Each small change we make builds up in number, till we have a full basket of them. 

So please my fellow saints, let’s get up and get a move on nuh, let’s start taking back our beautiful world from the evil doers, who are just bent on destroying it, and sending both it and us down to Hades with the evil one. And that’s not an acceptable option. But it’s only if we wake up and start smelling the roses, will it ever change. End of Sermon. (smile) Now let’s go home declaring (awright!!!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting all and sundry know to whom we belong, lock stock and barrel. 

As one sincere voice: ‘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 my immediate neighbours, as well as with the whole wide world! Glory be!’ 

And having made that proclamation, we are now bound to go out and share the amazing LOVE and friendship of Christ with those we meet, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!

…whether it’s in peace or war…actions always speak louder than words…and Christians are action oriented people…

 Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ