The Awesome Power, Majesty and LOVE of Jehovah God!

Psalm 150:6.       Let every thing that hath breath, praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord (shout Hallelujah).

Sorry Friends, but today, Thursday, the penultimate day of our work week, doesn’t look like it will live up to the summer image of the last few days, sunny and warm. In fact, it’s been forecasted to be somewhat cool and cloudy. And though we’d like every day of the summer season to be seasonally summer, (smile) we know that’s not always possible, especially with the vagaries of climate change, it’s unpredictable, unexpected behaviour. 

And furthermore, since we are true believers in Christ Jesus, we understand as Job says to his wife: ‘What? shall we receive (accept) good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive (accept) evil (calamity)?’ (Job 2:10) That’s a very good question my people, but we can accept the tough things that will happen in this life to all of us, because we also believe these words of Bruh Paul to the church at Rome. ‘And we know that all things work together for good to them that LOVE God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.’ (Rom. 8:28) 

Yes, in the long run, eventually, our great God will work everything out for our good, so we don’t have to worry too much about what happens in our daily lives. And here’s a prayer that can certainly help us to reduce our anxieties as we go about God’s business. It’s the prayer from the In Touch Devotional for this month. 

So please pray with me: ‘God, sometimes I feel stuck and hesitate to talk to you about it. Maybe I’m afraid of what You’ll say. Give me the courage to pray these words: Father, help me understand everything in my heart – what is pure and good, what’s holding me back, what I’ve never noticed, and what I’m afraid to see. Help me remember Your truth sets me free and you’ll never leave me to face anything alone. I trust You, God of all comfort. In Jesus’ name, amen.’ 

Oh friends, is there ever a lot of truth and reassurance in that simple prayer! And by the way, we don’t need courage to go to God, just faith and trust, because we know He’s made it so we can come to Him at any time with anything. Even when we’re so low down, we believe we cannot get any lower, all we have to do is turn to him and pour out our hearts, for He will understand and receive us with LOVING arms. 

Remember, the Lord created us and He knows all of our faults and foibles, so nothing we do or happens to us, is news to Him. He just desires us to come to Him with all of our problems, be they big or small, because He enjoys taking an active part in our lives… all parts of them. So whatever is holding us back today, let’s go to God and pour it our to him. He LOVES to listen to us, and will help us fix what ever is wrong. 

And as the prayer says, His truth sets us free, and He’ll NEVER leave us to face anything alone, because He’s a most faithful and trustworthy God, of LOVE, comfort, peace and joy! And all God’s children gave out a loud and grateful shout of ‘Praise the Lord! Praise Him for his goodness and mercy to the undeserving children of men!’ And that just dovetails right into these amazing words of praise from Psalm 150. So let’s get right into it: 

‘Praise ye the Lord (shout Hallelujah). Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power (his mighty heavens). Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet (cornet): praise him with the psaltery (lute or lyre) and harp. Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. Let every thing that hath breath, praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord (shout Hallelujah).’ (Ps. 150. 1-6) 

And isn’t that the god-awesome truth! Everything that has breath ought to praise the Lord, their Creator and Sustainer! Shout Hallelujah to Him in His high heaven and give Him thanks and praise for the marvellousness of His great creation; heaven and earth, the seas, and all that therein is! 

What an amazing God we serve my people! One who can do any and everything. Just look at how His creation earth, heaven, the seas, Mother Nature run, like clockwork, without any help. Who else can create such an amazing entity eh? No One but the great God Jehovah, he of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! That’s why we ought to worship and praise him with all of our hearts, souls, bodies and minds, for without Him, we’re nothing! 

And although we don’t deserve His awesome generosity, He still bestows it on us, for example in what we call our Thursday Blessings, given to help do His earthly work. So, let’s activate them now by declaring (chuh!!!) them. 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!!!) we’re now duty bound to go out and use those blessings in the same generous manner to help others less fortunate. Much LOVE!

…there’s only ONE TRUE GOD…JEHOVAH…

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit 3 February 2021Colossians 3:23.

Colossians 3:23.     And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; 

Welcome, welcome one and all to a bright new day in God’s great universe! In my part of the world it’s sunny but brrrr… cold. (smile) The snow is still frozen on the banks and yards and roof tops, and it doesn’t look like it intends to move for a while yet, but who cares eh? 

We know that with the great God Jehovah on our side, we can handle anything that comes against us. So be it flood, fire, earthquake, famine, disease, like the pandemic that has us all wrapped up now, we know that with God’s awesome and divine help we will be fine, and it will all pass eventually. 

Why? Because He’s promised that ‘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, saith the Lord.’ (Is. 54:17) Wow! What a powerful promise! 

And hear this other one nuh, from Isaiah too. ‘But now thus saith the Lord that created thee , O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel. Fear not: for I have redeemed thee. I have called thee by thy name, thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned: neither shall the flame kindle upon (scorch) thee. 

For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee (in thy place). Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable (honoured), and I have LOVED thee: therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life.’ (Is. 43:1-4) 

Oh mih people, what marvellous promises from our Creator! The problem is do we believe them, and do we live like we believe them? And don’t tell me foolishness bout that is Old Testament scripture and don’t have any use today, because it’s in the New Testament that the Lord redeemed us through our Saviour Jesus Christ, His only Son, proving how much He LOVED us and wanted us to be able to spend eternity with Him. So, there are no excuses for not believing  the Lord’s promises in His holy word! 

But coming back to our earlier question about whether we believe the promises and live them out in our lives, I’d venture to say not as much as we ought to. Why? I guess our faith is just not strong enough, especially with the entitled, easy lives we’re accustomed to living in these hitherto prosperous times. 

We’ve gotten soft and flabby and weak by the entitlement and easy living, lost what little backbone we had, and can’t handle hardship like our forefathers of even one generation ago. Just look at how so many of us are fumbling, bumbling and going under with the lockdown caused by the Corona virus. 

Granted, many of us are suffering economic and emotional loss and that will surely cause concern, but plenty others are simply complaining and grumbling because they can’t go out and refuse to adhere to the few rules we have for keeping the virus in check. And it’s not like we don’t see the rebellious fools who take matters into their own hands dropping like flies. 

But we so stupid and selfish that we still want to do it our way. Ah Lord eh. Even supposed Christians refusing to comply and holding physical church services as though the virus can’t harm them, when they seeing that it harming plenty others who behaving like them. 

But what does the ole fella know eh friends? Apparently not a whole lot. (smile) I go out, when necessary, but I try and abide by the rules because I believe that the Lord will keep me safe if I abide by the rules. It’s all about obedience my people; obedience to God and to our earthly rulers, whom God has put in place over us. Obviously, we must put obedience to God first. 

As Bruh Paul said to the Colossians: Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but with singleness of heart (sincerity), fearing God: 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. 3:22-24) 

Yes friends, whatever we do, we must do it as though we’re doing it unto the Lord, for as believers, in the overall scheme of things, it is the Lord that we’re serving. That means always doing our best work, not only when our bosses are watching, for the Lord is always watching, and He will eventually reward us with the promise of salvation if we are obedient to His commands. 

So what am I trying to say in this message eh? Simply that if we call ourselves believers in Christ, then we must believe and show ourselves thus. We can’t just talk the talk, but even more importantly we need to walk it, to be worthy examples to the unbelievers and the naysayers. Just like Jesus was a worthy example to us, we must be worthy examples for His purpose, which we claim to represent. 

Therefore, we can’t be wishy-washy and disobedient and insincere and all those other things that the unbelievers display. Oh my brethren we spout a lot of scripture, like we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us, please, please let’s show that it’s for real nuh and not just idle talk nuh! 

That’s what Christ expects of those who claim to be His followers. And now is the opportune time for us to show how wonderful, powerful and LOVING He is! And we promise to do exactly that! Glory be! So let’s go home now declaring (awright!) our Wednesday Wail letting all and sundry know of our wonderful and enviable position in Christ Jesus. Wow! 

Altogether now: ‘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!’ 

And as we all know, if we endure sincerely until the end, that glorious future will be even more glorious than we can ever ask or imagine! So let’s staunchly hang in there nuh mih people! Much LOVE!

…let your light so shine before men…that they may see your good works…and glorify your Father in heaven… (Matt. 5:16)

P.S. Sorry it’s a tad late, but both the computer and I had issues that ate up some valuable time. (smile) But as always, better late than never!  Much LOVE!

Todays Scrip-Bit 14 November 2018 Proverbs 9:5.

Proverbs 9:5. Come, eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have mingled (mixed). 
 
Welcome, welcome my people, to another bright and glorious day in the fold of Almighty God! Bless His holy name! And please remember that you belong to the BEST fold in all the universe; the one overseen by God’s Son, His first born, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ; such a wonderful caretaker that He’s known as the Good Shepherd! Glory be my brethren! 

I don’t know what we’d do if we didn’t have Jesus nuh. We’d certainly be in a much bigger mess than we are currently in. But through His selfless sacrifice on the cross at Calvary, His most precious blood redeemed us, our abominable sins were paid for, He took the weight of our sins on His shoulders and gave us His righteousness! 

And the great fact of the matter is that He was the Only One who could have atoned for our ghastly sins under the holy and righteous rule of the Father! That’s why we need to constantly remember His great sacrifice and praise His name and exalt Him, like the Father has done. As the Good Book says, the Lord is a rewarder of all those who come to Him in faith, who diligently seek Him and believe. (Heb.11:6) 

And the greatest show of faith that ever was, is that of Jesus, who believed that though His Father put the sins of the world on His shoulders and forsook Him for a moment, He would eventually raise Him up again, so that they could once more dwell in heaven…with all of His other children, now deemed righteous by His sacrifice. 

Oh friends, can we have such a strong and wonderful faith? It might just be a tad much for our finite souls, (smile) but there’s no reason why we can’t work steadfastly towards as great a faith as possible in this earthly life. And that’s exactly what the Lord desires of us, for it’s only through faith that we can receive all the promises He’s laid out for us. 

Now hear this awesome promise as stated by Cousin Sol in our Bit. Come, eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have mingled (mixed).’  Yes friends, that’s the Lord’s invitation for us today…in fact every day He throws out the same invitation… ‘Come!’ And live in wisdom and honour, understanding and knowledge. Like Cousin Sol says in the next verse: ‘Forsake the foolish (foolishness), and live; and go in the way of understanding.’ (Prov.9:6) 

How much clearer can it be eh my fellow believers? Not much. But our great and wonderful God always finds a way to do it. Listen to how He says it through His prophet Isaiah: ‘Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money, and without price.’ (Is.55:1) Wow! What an amazing invitation! Only the Great God Jehovah can make such a promise and keep it! 

And furthermore He asks? ‘Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satsifieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness (abundance).’ (Is.55:2) Oh my people which other supposed god has ever thrown out such an invitation eh? None other than the omnipotent God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! 

And He’s still not done: ‘Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David. Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people.

Behold thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of the Lord thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee. Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.’ (Is.55: 3-4) Ah my brethren what prophetic words of our great God! 

Hear the scholars’ explanation of those verse. ‘55:1-7. God’s free gift of salvation is offered to all who will receive it. Those who are spiritually hungry and thirsty may come and eat and drink without money (or freely). He promises an everlasting covenant to the Gentiles like the one He established with Israel. His invitation to all men is clearly stated by the appeal, Seek ye the Lord and call ye upon him.’ 

And friends, what the Lord promises, He delivers, in spades too. He sent us Jesus to redeem our souls, and Bruh Paul to lead the Gentiles into His kingdom. And Jesus continued the 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 and lowly in heart (gentle and humble): and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt.11:28-30) 

Oh friends, oh friends, what more must the Lord do for us to realize the wisdom of being one of His flock eh? I don’t know, and I don’t think the Lord knows either nuh, seeing that He has given us free choice to make our own decisions, else He would certainly do it. But be all that as it may, I’m imploring us to please hear the call of God today and respond in wisdom, for it’s in your best interest, not God’s. 

Now for those of us wise enough to accept the call, let’s go home telling the world our position in Christ as we declare our Wednesday Wail. All together in harmony now: ‘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!’ 

And every time we declare it, my mind just boggles with how glorious that future will be! Much LOVE!

…blessed are they which hunger and thirst after righteousness…for they shall be filled… (Matt.5:6)