The Overwhelming Importance of Recognizing and Accepting Jesus as Our Good Shepherd!

17 Oct 2025 Leave a comment

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

John 10::11.        I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.

Oh my people, it’s Friday, a damp and cloudy one, with showers promised for the weekend. But I know that we’ve all offered up our ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ jubilation, because the weekend is here. And unfortunately, today we’re on the late, late bus because I had to go out early this morning and do some stuff, and by the time I returned, a li’l rest was needed, but unfortunately that li’l rest turned into a much longer one than expected. (smile) And thus we’ll get right into it, with an interesting poem from our One Year Book of Bible Promises, with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. Most likely I’ve shared it before, but in these lost and scary times, it’s certainly worth sharing again. 

The title is simply ‘Lost Shepherd.’ Please read with me. ‘Sometimes, Lord In my groping effort to find You I have reversed the parable Of the Shepherd and the sheep. In my distorted concept The Shepherd has been lost And the sheep have trudged down Dangerous mountain cliffs to find him. How sadly prone I am to forget That I would not be searching for You If You were not first wanting me. Let me remember always, Lord How foolish it is To stumble through darkness Searching for You When I need only to surrender To Your search for me.’ 

And all God’s children said a loud and grateful shout of ‘Amen! God is good all of the time!’ And that He is my fellow believers! There’s absolutely no doubt about it, otherwise we would have all been cast in to hell fire long ago for our disobedience and proud, arrogant rebellion against His Sovereign Majesty! But in His awesome LOVING-KINDNESS, He set out to find us, like lost sheep, so that He could bring us back to his fold and keep us safe from harm. Now the Bible tells us that we should seek Him with all that we have, but it’s also worthy to note, as our poem above says, we would not be seeking Him, unless He was first wanting us. 

And isn’t it so good, so encouraging and reassuring that our Creator LOVES us so much that He would send out someone special to look for us and bring us back home. It’s like Isaiah said so long ago: ‘Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand (in strength), and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work (wage) before him. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.’ (Is. 40:10-11) 

Yes friends, that’s the picture of a God that’s been painted throughout the Bible; that of a Good Shepherd. Ezekiel also said it of the Lord. ‘And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. And I the Lord will be their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the Lord have spoken it.’ (Ezek. 34:23-24) 

Therefore, it’s no surprise that Bruh David could write in that most popular Psalm 23: ‘The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters, he restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.’ (Ps. 23:1-4) Oh yes my brethren! For that’s what a good shepherd does; provides food, safety, warmth and comfort for his sheep! 

And no one has done that more for us lost souls than our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. He said it Himself, then went and proved it on the cross of Calvary. Listen to this last part of his discourse on the sheep and shepherd. ‘Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief 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. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.’ (John 10:7-11) 

Wow! What marvellous reassurance! And that last verse is the Bible Promise for our poem today. And as we said earlier, Jesus did walk His talk; He went out and died for us lost, unworthy, sinful, disobedient sheep! He certainly did all he could to salvage the situation for us. Now the onus lies in our hands, on our shoulders. There’s no Lost Shepherd, but plenty lost sheep! And hopefully, we can end up as Peter says: ‘Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes  (wounds) ye were healed. For ye were as sheep going astray; but now are returned unto the Shepherd and the Bishop (Overseer) of your souls.’ (1 Pet. 2:24-25) 

Yes my people, that’s where we belong, and hopefully that’s where we’re all headed, but it’s not an easy row to hoe, therefore, we need to go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant, to get divine help. Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough…  because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help. 

Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times. 

We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’ 

And having said all of that my fellow believers, we need to follow it up with improved Christian witness, for it’s the major deterrent to us not receiving more divine aid! Much LOVE!

…Jesus first came looking for us…we now need to go looking for Him…and if we are sincere…He isn’t hard to find…

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   7 June 2024 Revelation 22:12.

07 Jun 2024 Leave a comment

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

Revelation 22:12.        And behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give to every man according as his work shall be.

And that distinctive weekly shout has gone out all around the world: ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday! Just let me at that weekend!’ Ah mih people, we do LOVE our weekends, because they belong to us, not to any employer, and we don’t have to get up early to go to work, nor face frustrating traffics jams to get there, then spend the whole day with people we don’t like, or who don’t like us, then face more irritating traffic jams to get back home, tired as a dog. No, the weekend is ours; sanctified as such. (smile) But we still have to get through Friday. No problem! Apparently since we have a free day to look forward to tomorrow. 

How wonderful it would be if we could look forward to Christ and His salvation the same way, meaning, we’d have no problem living fully for Him today! That’s a major problem though with believers; for with Christ we can only look to today, that makes it difficult to live sincerely and fully for Him. But just imagine the rewards and benefits we’ll be having in  heaven with Jesus nuh. Remember what He says in Revelation: ‘And behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give to every man according as his work shall be.’ (Rev. 22:12) 

That means Jesus can come at any time, like the proverbial thief in the night, and when He comes He will be rewarding people for their work on His behalf. So, if we want to get good rewards, then our work must be good. It’s as simple as that! And there is talk of rewards for working on Jesus’ behalf all though God’s Word. Let’s check out a few, like this one from Isaiah, where centuries before he spoke about the Lord’s coming with rewards. 

‘Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand (in strength), and his arm shall rule for him: behold his reward is with him, and his work (wage) before him. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.’ (Is. 40:10-11) What a beautiful picture my brethren of Jesus’ coming and the work He will do. Doesn’t that just lift your spirits and increase your faith? It ought to, since it was prophesied long before the actual coming of Jesus. 

Now, here’s this scripture from Hebrews that speaks directly to our point.. ‘But without faith it is impossible to please him (God): for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.’ (Heb.11:6) Yes friends, it’s ever so necessary to believe that God exists and He rewards those who diligently seek Him. That’s from the famous chapter on faith, with people like Noah, Abraham, Moses, Joseph not knowing or seeing what lay ahead of them, but nonetheless placing their total trust and faith in the Lord God Almighty when He directed them to do things they knew not how to do, or to go places, not knowing exactly where they were going. 

And they were all greatly rewarded by Him for their diligence and faithfulness. The same thing applies to us today, as Jesus says in the gospel of Luke. ‘But LOVE your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again (in return); and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father is merciful.’ (Luke 6:35-36) 

However, at this current time in the world’s existence, rather unfortunately, the words ‘mercy and merciful’ are not well known, nor are their fruit much extended like our heavenly Father desires. What a pity! For if they and their fruit were better known and extended, then there would not be as much strife, greed, hatred and selfishness as there currently is on God’s great earth! 

And James, Jesus’ brother, adds his two cents worth to the mix, when he writes in his epistle: ‘Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that LOVE him.’ (James 1:12) Ah my fellow saints, all throughout the Good Library, the Bible, the indisputable truth of God’s Word, are deeply embedded promises of rewards, righteousness and all kinds of other goodies for expending one’s time and talents on the Lord’s behalf. Let’s hope that with today’s revisiting of some of those scriptures that our hope and faith will be renewed and lead us to better fulfill God’s plan for our lives. 

Now, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant, seeking divine aid to help in these desperate times of need. Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help. Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. 

And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times. We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’ 

Lastly, let’s remember these very significant words from our prayer: ‘the example, we, your faithful believers set.’ And then go out and be very good examples, so others can see the benefits of believing in Jesus and follow our example. That’s the first step in receiving divine aid! Much LOVE!

…many more salty…light filled…true disciples of Christ…is what our world badly needs…RIGHT NOW…

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   16 January 2024 Matthew 6:21.

16 Jan 2024 Leave a comment

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

Matthew 6:21.       For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Oh friends, it’s a cold, snowy Tuesday in my neck of the woods. That means we probably won’t see any of the bright sunshine we experienced over the last two days. Chuh! It’s so nice seeing the sunshine reflect off the white snow. If we must have snow, then we do need sunshine to brighten it up. The sun can shine even while the snow is falling. That’s not too difficult for the Lord to do eh? (smile) Absolutely not! For nothing is impossible with our great God! As Isaiah says: ‘Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, neither his ear heavy that it cannot hear.’ (Is. 59:1) That means there is no limitation or weakness in God’s ability to save anyone or do anything! 

As Isaiah also said earlier on: ‘Behold the Lord God will come with strong hand (in strength), and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.’ (Is. 40:10-11) Wow! What a powerful scripture my brethren, speaking of Christ’s coming and gathering His people like a shepherd gathers his flock. It shows us both the Lord’s strength and His never ending LOVE and compassion for His sinful creation called human beings. 

And I like how this commentary puts it. ‘When the Bible talks about God’s right arm, it refers to His powerful, ruling arm—His justice, His holiness, and His strength. God is like that. He is all that and more.’ No doubt about it my fellow believers! In His omnipotence, omniscience and omni-presence, our majestic and magnificent God embodies ALL that there is, and can ever be! That’s why it’s so foolish and unwise for us frail, fickle and finite human beings to turn away from Almighty God our Creator, Controller and Protector. 

For as Jesus so rightly said: ‘I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same shall bring forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.’ (John 15:5) And that’s gospel truth my people, for without Jesus in our lives, our ability to do much of anything productive is severely limited. Remember that God gave us free will so that we could choose His Will, not the will of Beelzebub or any of the many other false gods existing in our evil world. And when we don’t choose God’s will, then we suffer the negative consequences of disobedience and rebellion. It’s as simple as that. 

As Uncle Charles (Dr. Charles Stanley) liked to say: ‘You reap what you sow, more than you sow, and later than you sow.’ And that’s an indisputable fact! It’s just the way the Lord’s kingdom is set up. Meaning that if you sow evil, you will eventually reap evil, and if you sow good seed, you will eventually reap good fruit. And the best way to ensure that we are sowing good seed is by accepting and living by these momentous and oh so true words of Jesus. ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:33) 

Yes my brethren, that’s the basic root of our faith: keeping God first place in our lives, making sure that all, or most of what we do and say falls into the realm of His godly will! Then, all that we need to live this earthly life will be added to us. As Bruh Paul so confidently said to the Philippians: ‘But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.’ (Phil. 4:19) Yuh see how it all falls into place my fellow believers? We acknowledge God as El Numero Uno, or Number One, and He looks after all our basic needs through His wonderful Son, Christ Jesus! It couldn’t get any better than that. 

But some of us mistakenly and foolishly have decided to follow the will of the evil Satan, to whom we sell our souls to get the same earthly stuff that we can quite easily get from Almighty God. The big difference is that when you follow Satan all your earthly treasure will be left behind when you descend into hellfire and damnation, and eventually eternal separation from God, which is the worst predicament in which a human soul can find itself. However, when you sincerely seek Christ and His kingdom, though your earthly treasure is still left behind, you are able to store up treasures in heaven that you can enjoy while spending eternity with our Triune God! 

Now isn’t that a much better scenario? It certainly is! And if you don’t believe me, (smile) then listen to Jesus explain it. ‘Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt (ruin), and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves  treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt (ruin), and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.’ (Matt. 6:19-21) And that’s the indisputable truth friends! Wherever our treasures are stored, that’s indeed where our hearts and most of our attention will be focused. 

And we’ll just add these two verses from 1 Peter as extra fodder for our souls. (smile) Peter writes these words of encouragement to the Christian diaspora, those spread abroad from their homeland, and undergoing tough lives with a lot of undeserved persecution. ‘Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively (living) hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you.’ (1 Pet. 1:3-4) Please be reassured my fellow saints, that if we sincerely live for Christ, then there will be rewards awaiting us in heaven. 

Now, for those of us who believe it and are trying our best to live for Christ, let’s go home declaring (awright!!!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting all and sundry know to whom we belong, lock, stock and barrel. As one strong 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 declaration (yesss!!!) we must now go out and share the amazing LOVE  and friendship of Christ with others, so that they too may come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!

…earthly treasure only lasts a lifetime…while heavenly treasure lasts for eternity… 

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