02 Jan 2022
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: ask and it shall be given to you, Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir, come exalt His name forever, Covid regulated groups, delivered me from all my fears, feel the presence of the heavenly hosts, glorify the Lord with me, he will be found of you, He'll give you everything, I sought the Lord and he heard me, if ye forsake him he will forsake you, if ye seek him, knock and it shall be opened, magnify the Lord with me, Oh taste and see that the Lord is good, psalm 34, raising up their voices in one accord, saved me from mine enemies, seek and you shall find, Shane Barnard, the first Sunday of 2022, the Lord hears the righteous, The Lord is with you while you be with Him, The Lord will be a refuge for the oppressed, the Son of God surrounds His saints, they that know thy name will trust thee, those who look on Him are radiant, thou Lord hast not forsaken them that seek thee, to Christ be the honour, to the King of Kings
Psalm 34:4. I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.
Here it is friends, the first Sunday of this new year of 2022! And although we still can’t worship with the freedom and gay abandon that we once did, with the Lord’s help, we’ve found technological ways to keep on worshipping individually, while gathering in small Covid regulated groups for corporate worship. But regardless of how we do it, the important thing is that we are still worshipping despite the many constraints and restrictions placed upon us.
And today, this first Sunday of the new year, we are going to open with a most appropriate song, one of the most remarkable and beautiful songs of this century. We are talking about the reworking by Shane Barnard of the first ten verses of Bruh David’s famous Psalm 34 – The Lord hears the righteous. And that He certainly does my people! Barnard subtitled his song ‘O taste and see that the Lord is good,’ and the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir has done a wonderful version of it.
Every time I see the live video of it, my spirit gets a miraculous lift. As one comment on the performance says: ‘Every time I listen to this song, I imagine myself along with all the other saints in heaven worshipping. This song carries a strong anointing. You can feel the presence of the heavenly hosts.’ And that’s no lie. So, a la the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir, let’s raise our voices in sacrificial praise, let’s magnify and exalt the Lord’s holy name together, letting Him know that this year we are determined to be more faithful than we were in 2021.
From the depths of our hearts and souls then: ‘I sought the Lord And He answered me And delivered me From every fear. Those who look on Him Are radiant They’ll never be ashamed They’ll never be ashamed. This poor man cried And the Lord heard me And saved me from My enemies. The Son of God Surrounds His saints He will deliver them He will deliver them.
Magnify the Lord with me Come exalt His name together Glorify the Lord with me Come exalt His name forever. Oh taste and see That the Lord is good Oh blessed is he Who hides in Him. Oh fear the Lord Oh all you saints He’ll give you everything He’ll give you everything. (Magnify the Lord with me Come exalt His name together Glorify the Lord with me Come exalt His name forever. Repeat)
(Let us bless the Lord Every day and night Never ending praise May our incense rise. Repeat 4 times) Magnify the Lord with me Come exalt His name together Glorify the Lord with me Come exalt His name forever. {Repeat} Oh taste and see That the Lord is good. He’ll give you everything He’ll give you everything. Oh taste and see That the Lord is good. He’ll give you everything He’ll give you everything. …He’ll give you everything…’
Oh my people, that was just wonderful! We were almost as good as the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir! (smile) Wow! Heaven knows now that we are serious about worshipping our great God. And a couple more accolades for the BTC, are in order here. One says: ‘I just imagine being in heaven worshipping with this magnificent choir, just magnifying our great God! Hallelujah!!’
And the other declares: ‘The worship that the people utter after the song is like Heaven, every race, every tongue raising up their voices in one accord unto The King of Kings.’ But you know what grabs me most about the whole performance is the way the musicians get into the song. You can see that they are truly feeling it. And that to me is what makes it so lively and enchanting, for when musicians really feel what they play, it just lifts the entire performance.
And the whole psalm is based on Bruh David’s simple but heart felt words: ‘I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.’ (Ps. 34:4) Yes friends, that’s what sincerely seeking the Lord can do. And we know that’s what Bruh David did for his whole life, despite the many mistakes he made, and the Lord blessed him continually.
Now the prophet Azariah also made a similar claim to the people of Israel on one of the occasions when they had turned away from the God of their forefathers and found themselves in serious trouble. The Good Book describes it thus: ‘And the Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded. And he went out to meet Asa, (the pious and faithful king who was sincerely trying to clean up Israel’s idolatrous behaviour) and said unto him,
Hear ye me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin; The Lord is with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you. Now for a long season Israel hath been without the true God, and without a teaching priest (prophet), and without law. But when they in their trouble did turn unto the Lord God of Israel, and sought him, he was found of them.’ (2 Chr. 15:1-4)
Yuh see that mih bredrin? Although Israel had forsaken the Lord, when they turned back to Him in time of trouble, they found Him, and He released their fear. So what does that tell us in this current time of great fear and ungodliness eh? It’s simple and so apparent: we need to turn back to the God of our forefathers and ask for His help. But very few of us, comparatively speaking are even looking to the Lord for help in these turbulent, fearful and very disruptive times.
And listen to Bruh David’s advice from Psalm 9 nuh. ‘The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.’ (Ps. 9:9-10) Oh my people, it couldn’t be any plainer or more straightforward than that! In times of trouble the Lord God Almighty is our surest refuge, the best place to turn to for help! So why aren’t we turning to Him in greater numbers eh?
Because we are too hard-headed, proud and stubborn, and like to do our own thing, even though it’s not working. But please remember these wise words of Jesus: ‘And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.’ (Luke 11:9-10)
And I believe that’s a good place for us to end today. But please my fellow saints, let’s not forget that though this is a new year, nothing has really changed, just some digits on our computers and papers. We still have a host of problems to deal with and changing a date won’t solve them. The only thing that will, is for our society to sincerely turn back to Jesus Christ, and all that He stands for! Much LOVE!
…to Christ be the honour…to Christ be the glory…for all that He’s done for mankind…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8
29 Aug 2021
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir, delivered me from every fear, evil shall slay the wicked., firsthand experience, He'll give you everything, his praise shall continually be in my mouth, I sought the Lord, I will bless the Lord at all times, let us exalt His name together, lovr, many are the afflictions of the righteous, musical perfection in gospel music, my mouth shall make her boast in the Lord, o magnify the Lord with me, Oh taste and see that the Lord is good, psalm 34, saved him out of all his troubles, saveth such as be of a contrite spirit, the circle has come full circle, the Lord delivereth him out of them all, the Lord heard him, the Lord hears the righteous, the Lord is nigh, the Lord redeemeth the soul of his servants, there is no distance in prayer, there is no want to them that fear the Lord, this poor man cried, to them that are of a broken heart
Psalm 34:3. O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together.
Well, the circle has come full circle friends; (smile) it’s Sunday once again, time to give thanks and praise to our Lord God Jehovah as a corporate body, be it in actual physical contact, or by technological means. There is no distance in prayer, once we are all on the same page. And our song of praise and worship today is one of my favourite gospel songs, it’s based on the first nine verses of Bruh David’s words in Psalm 34 – The Lord hears the righteous – and is aptly titled ‘Psalm 34.’
Apparently the person who put this together is named Shane Bernard, and the version we are going to do today is based on the live performance made popular by that marvellous group of singers, the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir… yes, I am biased. (smile) So in sweet, rich, soulful harmony, let’s wake all heaven with our voices of sacrificial praise… and please don’t forget all the bells and whistles, harmonies and background vocals, clapping and whatever, cause we putting on a most wonderful performance this morning.
Singing: ‘‘I sought the Lord And He answered me And delivered me From every fear. Those who look on Him Are radiant They’ll never be ashamed They’ll never be ashamed. This poor man cried And the Lord heard me And saved me from My enemies. The Son of God Surrounds His saints He will deliver them He will deliver them. Magnify the Lord with me Come exalt His name together Glorify the Lord with me Come exalt His name forever. Oh taste and see That the Lord is good Oh blessed is he Who hides in Him. Oh fear the Lord Oh all you saints He’ll give you everything He’ll give you everything.
(Magnify the Lord with me Come exalt His name together Glorify the Lord with me Come exalt His name forever. Repeat) (Let us bless the Lord Every day and night Never ending praise May our incense rise. Repeat 4 times) Magnify the Lord with me Come exalt His name together Glorify the Lord with me Come exalt His name forever. {Repeat} Oh taste and see That the Lord is good. He’ll give you everything He’ll give you everything. Oh taste and see That the Lord is good. He’ll give you everything He’ll give you everything. …He’ll give you everything…’
Oh friends, that was truly marvellous! We did almost as good as the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir (smile) and heaven just lapped it up! Wow! And some of you might think I’m overreacting, but if you’ve never listened to the choir sing it, please check it out on You Tube, make sure it’s the live version. And what I LOVE most about it, is the way the musicians get involved. You can see that they are feeling the music too, and it’s when the musicians are also into it, that music sounds real good.
Now, usually I don’t pay attention to the comments at the bottom, but this time I was certainly led by the Holy Spirit to do so, and was I ever amazed by the number of accolades for the song, by the amount of people who felt the same way I did. And this is just during the last few months. I just had to share some with you. These are all self-explanatory. ‘This is how it would be like in heaven. Every voice, musician, race, soul praising the name of God. Amen!!’ – ‘Every frame, every beat, every note, perfectly executed. THIS is musical perfection in gospel music.’ –
‘Every time I listen to this song, I imagine myself along with all the other saints in heaven worshipping. This song carries a strong anointing. You can feel the presence of the heavenly hosts.’ – ‘The worship that the people utter after the song is like Heaven, every race, every tongue raising up their voices in one accord unto The King of Kings.’ – ‘I just imagine being in heaven worshipping with this magnificent choir, just magnifying our great God! Hallelujah!!’
And I’ve saved the best for last, because this one truly shows the power of God working in a believer’s life. ‘I work in ER, single parent, uni student, worked through the pandemic. Got really bad Covid end of January. Still on long term recovery. Got too painful last week and I found myself ‘telling’ God what He could do to fix this. Went on YouTube and this song came up. I stood up and started worshiping even though I did not know the words. Before I knew it, I was down on my knees with my hands lifted up in worship. I’m back at work in ER but I have not stopped playing this song. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for this worship. My deepest condolences to everyone who lost a loved one. God bless you and keep you safe.’
Yes friends, that’s what your faith and the amazing power of God can do! And Bruh David knew it from firsthand experience, that’s why he could pen these marvellous words, advocating the beauty and wisdom of worshipping Jehovah God. ‘I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. My mouth shall make her boast in the Lord; the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad. O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together. I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.
They looked unto him, and were lightened (radiant): and their faces were not ashamed. This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them. O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. O fear the Lord, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear (reverence) him.’ (Ps. 34:1-9)
Ah mih people, I don’t see how we can get any better or truer sentiments than those nuh! For that’s exactly what our God does on behalf of those who sincerely seek, reverence and worship Him! That means we need to surrender our lives to Almighty God, put our trust and faith solely in Him, and then wait for Him to move in our lives. And if you don’t believe the first part of the psalm, then listen to the last part. (smile)
‘The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles. The Lord is nigh (near) unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite (crushed) spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them all. He keepeth all his bones: not one of them is broken. Evil shall slay the wicked: and they that hate the righteous shall be desolate (condemned). The Lord redeemeth the soul of his servants: and none of them that trust in him shall be desolate (condemned).’ (Ps. 34:17-22)
And that’s the living truth friends! So please, let’s get wise and begin seriously living for God nuh. It’s what this life is all about! Much LOVE!
…God created us to worship Him…not Satan…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8
11 Nov 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: 99th anniversary, a better tomorrow, abuse trust, aggressive, Alexis Helmer, almighty god, an eraser, angry, Anselm, any good thing, anything is possible, Armistice Day, be wise, blessed, break faith, chances, chastened, confess, contrite hearts, cover ups, crosses, disobedience, failing hands, fallen dead, fallen world, fear the Lord, felt dawn, First world war, forgive, forgiven, forsake, glory, glory to God, grace, hold it high, honesty, honour, In Flanders Fields, inpsire us, Jesus Christ, John McCrae, lack, larks, leave, life's too short, limitations, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, loved, making mistakes, mankind's fall, modus operandi, no good thing, no want, onipotent god, overlays, peace, penitent, poppies, poppies grow, quarrel, ravages of war, refusal, Remembrance Day, repent, restore, row on row, saints, saw sunset glow, Second world war, see, seek the Lord, shield, smaller, success, suffer hunger, sun, takes control, taste, the dead, the foe, the Great War, the Lord God, the Lord hears the righteous, The Lord is good, the torch, think big, trust, Veterans Day, walk uprightly, war, war-like, warmongering nature, waste of human life, we shall not sleep, wisdom, withhold, young lions
Psalm 84:11. For the Lord God is a sun and shield: the Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.
HAPPY ARMISTICE, REMEMBRANCE, VETERAN’S DAY!
Yeh friends, it’s the 99th anniversary of the Great War; the First World War; the war that was supposed to end ALL WAR! Hn! But they didn’t count on the Second World War less than 30 years later.
And I seriously doubt that war will ever disappear from man’s agenda until our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ returns in all His splendiferous glory and takes control, for mankind from his fall, has been an angry, war-like animal. Peace and LOVE are only overlays, cover ups for his naturally aggressive and warmongering nature.
In the United Kingdom they call it Armistice Day, in Canada Remembrance Day and in the U. S of A, Veteran’s Day. And we honour our fallen dead by wearing poppies on our clothes during this sad time of remembrance and awful waste of human life.
And all over the world, this most famous war memorial poem, In Flanders’ Fields, is read on this day. It was written by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae in May 1915, on the battlefields of Belgium, after the death and burial of one of his friends, Alexis Helmer by a German shell.
Please remember with me: ‘In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place: and in the sky The larks still bravely singing fly Scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the dead: Short days ago, We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, LOVED and were LOVED: and now we lie In Flanders fields!
Take up our quarrel with the foe To you, from failing hands, we throw The torch: be yours to hold it high If ye break faith with us who die, We shall not sleep, though poppies grow In Flanders fields.’
Ah mih people, sadly, there are even more quarrels and foes than when this poem was written. Man has not learned anything from the ravages of war. But we won’t linger on the topic of war, instead we’ll turn to a more uplifting subject, quotes from our friend Anselm, who sincerely aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow.
Here is the first one: ‘I Am Thankful For All Of Those Who Said, “No” To Me. It’s Because Of Them I’m Doing It Myself.’ And in some respects I can attest to that, because some of the things I am doing for myself now are because others didn’t want to do them for me. Refusal often leads to your getting up and doing stuff yourself.
But in saying that, we have to realize that ‘Success Does Not Consist In Never Making Mistakes, But In Never Making The Same One A Second Time.’ We all make mistakes, but when we keep making the same one(s) over and over, then something’s definitely wrong with our modus operandi.
That leads us to this next quote: ‘Your Life Only Gets Better When You Get Better.’ Truth in a nutshell people! Then there is this one: ‘Think Big And Don’t Listen To People Who Tell You It Can’t Be Done. Life’s Too Short To Think Small.’
Now there is much to be said for that, but to a certain extent we also have to recognize our limitations, although with our awesome and omnipotent God, anything at all is possible. Glory to God!
And I like this last quote: ‘Trust is like an eraser, it gets smaller and smaller after every mistake.’ Now isn’t that the gospel truth! Every time we abuse the trust others have in us, the supply gets lower, until it just plain runs out, and they don’t trust us anymore, regardless of what we say or do.
In fact, we’re lucky to get more than one chance at that state of trust. The only place where second, third, fourth and even fifth chances are possible without condemnation and disgrace is with the Lord God Almighty, Maker of heaven, earth and all therein.
As our Bit tells us: ‘For the Lord God is a sun and shield: the Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.’
But even then, in general, He expects us to walk in His will, not in disobedience all of the time. But you do have chances to repent and confess and be forgiven. And though His trust in you won’t diminish, you will feel the consequences of disobedience, you will be chastened in some form and fashion.
But He will NEVER leave you nor forsake you! You have His ever-faithful promise on that. As Bruh David so rightly declares in Psalm 34 – The Lord hears the righteous.
‘O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. O fear the Lord, ye his saints: for there is no want (lack) to them that fear him. The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the Lord shall not want (lack) any good thing.’ (Ps.34:8-10)
Oh friends, it couldn’t be put any simpler than that. So today, as we remember the fallen, and ponder the unfortunate ravages of war, let’s be wise nuh, try and walk uprightly, and reach out to our God with penitent and contrite hearts; seek Him in all honesty, so that He can bless and forgive and restore our fallen world. That is heavenly wisdom! Much LOVE!
…seek…knock…ask…and you will be answered…
20 Sep 2017
by randyobrien50
in Inspirational Living
Tags: 2017, a beautiful experience, a fine day, a glorious future with Jesus, a grain of mustard seed, a milestone, a watershed year, blessed is the man, confess, David, delivered me, disastrous, Donald Trump, earthquake, faith, fear, fear not, fear the Lord, forgiving God, from all my fears, halfway home, he heard me, heavenly throne, hurricane, I sought the Lord, in control of the universe, Jose, kneel, lack, living for Jesus, looking straight ahead, Maria, merciful, Mexico City, miraculous things, na, natural disasters, not ashamed, nothing shall be impossible, O taste and see, omnipotent god, One Year Book of Bible promises, personal testimony, physically and emotionally spent, poor man, possible emergency, poverty, puzzling circumstance, Ruth Harms Calkin, saints, seek the Lord, serious messages, suffer want, testing, the angel of the Lord, the breath of life, the Lord hears the righteous, The Lord is good, time of fear, trial, troubles, trusts in God, unbelief, warms the cockles of my heart, wasted hours, Wednesday Wail
Psalm 34:4. I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.
Welcome to Wednesday friends and neighbours! For some of us it’s going to be a fine day, for others it could be disastrous.
And just looking at the possibilities in our hemisphere; Jose is still moving up the North American east coast causing some damage, while Maria is tossing a hissy fit in the Caribbean, steadily moving in the direction of Puerto Rico and some of the smaller Caribbean Islands.
But to add to all of that, a 7.1 magnitude earthquake apparently has hit Mexico City with a significant loss of life and physical structures. When is it going to end eh friends? 2017 has definitely been a watershed year, a milestone in our society from the antics of Donald Trump to the natural disasters we’re experiencing.
But my faithful brethren, there’s no need to fear, for our omnipotent God is still on His heavenly throne and still in control of the universe He created. He’s just sending us some serious messages.
And to help us, this Wednesday morning, here is something from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calking that simply tells us: ‘Fear Not.’
Please pray with me. ‘Again and again, dear Lord I read Your words, “Fear Not.” Surely You would not say it so often If there were any reason to fear. Nor would You command it so explicitly If You could not keep me from fearing.
God, You have given me a Fear Not For every puzzling circumstance For every possible emergency For every trial and testing Real or imagined. Yet I confess wasted hours – Even days, dear Lord When fear clutches and clobbers me Until I am physically and emotionally spent.
Lord, when David cried to You, You delivered him from all his fears. On this gray-sky morning I kneel before You with David’s cry. O my Father, I cannot believe You would be less kind to me Than You were to David.’
And no my people, our most merciful and forgiving God would NEVER be less kind to you than He was to Bruh David, if you cry out to Him in your time of fear!
And our Bit for today, which comes from Psalm 34 – The Lord hears the righteous – the words of none other than Bruh David proves it in spades. Bruh David declares in no uncertain terms: ‘I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.’
Oh my people, I know that some of you will say that your faith is not as strong as Bruh David’s was, and that will surely be true, because not too many of us will have His strong faith, but remember what Jesus said to the disciples when they could not heal a demon infested child.
‘Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove (move); and nothing shall be impossible unto you.’ (Matt.17:20)
So friends, once you have true faith, all sorts of miraculous things are possible, with God’s help. Therefore, please don’t sell yourself short. And the Bible verses associated with the poem above, are the two verses after our Bit.
‘They looked unto him, and were lightened (radiant): and their faces were not ashamed. This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.’ (Ps.34:5-6)
Again my brethren, yuh see how our faces become radiant and we’re not ashamed when we look to the Lord for our daily needs? And when we cry out to him, even in our physical and spiritual poverty, He hears us and delivers us.
Hear Bruh David further: ‘The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them. O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.
O fear the Lord, ye his saints: for there is no want (lack) to them that fear him. The young lions do lack and suffer hunger: but they that seek the Lord shall not want (lack) any good thing.’ (Ps.34:7-10)
And all of that friends, is a personal testimony of Bruh David, when he narrowly escaped death at the hands of Saul, his archenemy. So it’s not mere talk, but true reality. That means we can rely on it without any fear.
And seeing that we have now eased ALL of our fears (smile), let’s go home loudly, proudly and sincerely declaring our Wednesday Wail, which tells of our profound faith and trust in Almighty God.
‘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!’
Now let’s put it all into action, so others can see it and come to Jesus. Much LOVE!…
living with…and for Jesus…is such a beautiful experience…it just warms the cockles of one’s heart…
10 May 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a forgiving heart, a generous hand, a glorious future with Jesus, a life of godliness, a life of lasting significance, a steadfast desire, a thing of beauty, an ornament of grace, blessed, blessing, chains about thy neck, charity begins at home, Christian, Creator, deceit, depart from evil, do good, Dr. Charles Stanley, every new day, folly, forgiveness, fundamentals of Christianity, godless times, grace, gratitude, halfway home, hear ye children, I'm not looking back, impactful, in the home, interactions with others, Jesus Christ, keep thy tongue from evil, know understanding, listen to, loving-kindness, meaningful, mercy, mirror images of God, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, my hands are on the plough, obey the Lord, our Lord and Saviour, personal influence, Praise the Lord, provider, rejoice, reverence for God's work, seek peace, sincere faith, sincere love, teaching others, thanks and praise, the breath of life, The eyes of the Lord, the face of the Lord, the fear of the Lord, the instruction of a father, the Lord hears the righteous, the remebrance, the righteous, the splendour of nature, thy lips from speaking guile, to follow jesus, transmission of wisdom, undeserving children of men, Wednesday Wail, wisdom, without works faith is dead, write deep in our hearts
Proverbs 4:1. Hear ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.
Oh my Scrip-Bit friends and family, another glorious day on God’s great earth is opening up before us! Let’s give the Lord some thanks and praise for that nuh. It’s not everyone who went to bed last night that got up to see the rising sun this Wednesday morning, so we ought to count ourselves very blessed indeed.
Oh, one of these mornings we won’t wake up either, (smile) but until then, let’s rejoice in the blessing of every new day that we see, and give many thanks to our Creator and Provider for each opportunity to behold the splendour of nature here on earth!
And all God’s people declared a loud and grateful: ‘Praise the Lord for His LOVING-kindness to the undeserving children of men!’
And without a doubt, our God does shower us with LOVING-kindness; things like grace, mercy, and forgiveness that we do not deserve! But that’s the kind of magnanimous God He is! So please let’s never forget it, and suitably show our gratitude.
Now here is some wonderful advice on living ‘A Life of Lasting Significance,’ I discovered on a card on my desk this morning. It comes from Uncle Charles (Dr. Charles Stanley).
And he says to live a life of lasting significance we must: ‘Ensure that your interactions with others are truly meaningful and eternally impactful by: Modelling a steadfast desire to follow Jesus and a sincere faith in His will and ways.
Demonstrating reverence for God’s work. Teaching others how to listen to and obey the Lord. Expressing a sincere LOVE, a forgiving heart, and a generous hand in every situation.’
Now that’s some wonderful advice every Christian ought to write deep in their hearts and do their best to put into practice, for remember, without works faith is dead, and they will know us by our works.
And I guess one of the best ways to achieve that goal above is by paying serious and sincere attention to our Bit. ‘Hear ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.’
And before I go any further, let me share some info from the scholars that I wanted to share yesterday, but didn’t. ‘4:3-4. Three generations are linked together in the transmission of wisdom. Note that it is transmitted by personal influence, especially in the home.’
Yes friends, those words refer to verses 3 and 4 of chapter 4 that we read yesterday. You can read them for yourselves, but what I want to point out is the fact that the wisdom of God is transferred most often by personal influence, by the way we demonstrate it in our personal lives to those around us, especially in our homes.
As the old adage so rightly says; Charity begins at home! And that’s exactly where it ought to begin! We parents and elders have to show the young people the LOVE and wisdom of God first in our homes.
We can’t wait and expect them to find or learn them when they go to school or to church, especially in these godless times, when those things are no longer taught in schools, and churches are teaching, God alone knows what!
Remember my brethren, the teaching of, and the reflections, the mirror images of God have to begin at home!
Now let’s check out some other scriptures that agree with out Bit. Listen as Bruh David calls to us from Psalm 34 – The Lord hears the righteous.
‘Come, ye children, hearken unto me: I will teach you the fear of the Lord. What man is he that desireth life, and LOVETH many days, that he may see good? Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile (deceit).
Depart from evil, and do good, seek peace, and pursue it. The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry. The face of the Lord is against them that do evil, to cut of (destroy) the remembrance of them from the earth.’ (Ps.34:11-16)
Oh precious people of God, that’s the simple, practical way to live a life of godliness! It couldn’t get any simpler than that: speak truth, do good, seek peace! Those are all the basic elements of our Christian faith.
Now hear this last scripture from Cousin Sol. ‘My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother. For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck.’ (Prov.1:8-9)
And the scholars tell us. ‘1:8. My son begins the first of 10 similar discourses in which the father appeals to the son to listen to his counsel and choose wisdom over folly. The mention of the mother shows that the original setting of the book was the home, not the court or school.’
‘1:9. Chains about thy neck, that is, an adornment or thing of beauty in one’s life.’
Ah mih people, again we see the critical importance of teaching our faith at home, if we want to continue propagating it. So please, I implore us, if we want to see our children live wholesome, godly lives, then we desperately need to get back to teaching and living the fundamentals of Christianity in our homes.
Now let’s end by sincerely and truthfully declaring our Wednesday Wail. As one strong voice: ‘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 always, let’s go out and put all that we’ve talked about into action nuh, so that we can glorify our great God and Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Much LOVE!
…to know, know, know Him…is to LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Him…
17 Jul 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a forgiging heart, a generous hand, a servant spirit, anger, another week of work, bitterness, blowing off steam, Bruh David, Bruh Paul, charles stanley, christian heritage, confusion, depart from evil, desires life, do good, enabled to handle it, envy, every evil work, evil and ungodly world, fellowship, for where envying and strife is, Friday chant, furthering God's glorious kingdom, generous help, goodness, hatred, I pray this in Jesus name, if he have done thee no harm, in soul body and mind, In Touch Ministries, Jesus Christ as our guide, joyfully shouting, keep thy tongue from evil, kind of attitude, live a life of lasting significance, live peaceably with all men, Lord and Saviour, meaningful interaction, negative emotions, partying it up, peace, provide things honest to all men, provider, relaxation, renewed and refreshed, repay to no man evil for evil, resnetment, rest, reverence for God's Word, right perspective, seek peace and pursue it, serious problems, service of love, sincere faith in Jesus' will and ways, sincere love, slave labour, standing the test of time, steadfast desire to follow Jesus, strife, strive not with a man without cause, sufficent fun, teaching others, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, thanking God, the body of Christ, the church at Rome, the essence of the Christian life, the fear of the Lord, the Lord hears the righteous, the weekend's here, thy lips from speaking guile, to listen, to obey God's word, trials and tribulations, truth, unappreciative boss, unchristian attitude, Uncle Charles, ungodly behaviour, unhappiness, unhealthy, wisdom
Proverbs 3:30. Strive not with a man without cause, if he have done thee no harm.
Oh Friends, it looks like this Friday is going to be a cloudy, rainy kind of day….
‘We don’t care what kind of day it is nuh; whether it be rain, sleet or snow!’ is the response I quickly receive. ‘We just thanking God that it’s Friday and the weekend’s here at last!
You don’t know the amount of backbreaking slave labour we put in this past week for an unappreciative boss nuh. That’s why we joyfully shouting TGIF! Thank God is Friday yes!’
Ah mih people, I know the trials and tribulations we all go through trying to make a half-decent life in this evil and ungodly world. It’s not easy, but with Jesus Christ as our guide, our Lord and Saviour, our Provider, we are enabled to handle it better than most.
And to help us stay with it, to get the right perspective for handling the upcoming weekend, let’s chant our Friday Chant with positive energy and enthusiasm. As one chanter now: ‘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, that’s the kind of attitude we need to have for the weekend, not one of blowing off steam by simply partying it up and ignoring the wants and needs of body and soul.
Now here is an interesting list of things we can do to live a life of lasting significance. I got this on a card I recently received from In Touch Ministries, that’s the organization behind Uncle Charles (Charles Stanley).
It says: ‘Ensure that your interaction with others are truly meaningful and eternally impactful by: Modeling a steadfast desire to follow Jesus and a sincere faith in His will and ways. Demonstrating reverence for God’s Word. Teaching others how to listen to and obey the Lord. Expressing a sincere LOVE, a servant spirit, a forgiving heart, and a generous hand in every situation.’
Oh my people, isn’t that just so beautiful! It captures the essence of the true Christian life in a nutshell. And it segues in quite nicely to our Bit, which instead of being a do for the believer like the other statements above, is an important don’t. (smile)
‘Strive not with a man without cause, if he have done thee no harm.’
And that my people is also a significant statement for those of us who want to live an impactful life for Christ. We cannot afford to be constantly in strife with others, even when there is reason for it, much less when there is none.
Unfortunately though, there are too many of us in this modern world, Christians included, who just like to be involved in strife, be there reason for it or not. That my brethren is a rather unhealthy and unchristian attitude to life, which can only lead to serious problems and much unhappiness.
And if you don’t believe me, please remember what James tells us: ‘For where envying and strife is (self-seeking exists), there is confusion and every evil work.’ (James 3:16)
And that’s the gospel truth my people! Envy and strife and their negative family of emotions and behaviour only cause negative responses like resentment, anger, bitterness and hatred. And those are things we definitely don’t need in our already tough and confused lives at all, at all, at all. (smile)
Now let’s look at some scripture that bears out the contention in our Bit. Hear Bruh Paul to the church at Rome, talking about the service of LOVE to all. ‘Recompense (repay) to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest (have regard for good things) in the sight of all men. If it be possible, as much as lieth in (depends on) you, live peaceably with all men.’ (Rom.12:17-18)
Ah mih breddren, that is indisputable heavenly wisdom! Evil, dishonesty and strife are not supposed to be a part of the Christian heritage.
Now listen to Bruh David from Psalm 34 – The Lord hears the righteous. ‘Come, ye children, hearken unto me: I will teach you the fear of the Lord. What man is he that desireth life, and LOVETH many days, that he may see good? Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile (deceit). Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace and pursue it.’ (Ps.34:11-14)
And how many thousands of years later my friends, those words are still standing the test of time! The first thing we need to learn about God is that the negative stuff like strife, anger and evil have no place whatsoever in His dominion! He deals in the positives like peace and LOVE and goodness.
Ah Friends, if only a li’l bit more of those things existed in the body of Christ eh, the church, how wonderful life would be!
And on that solemn note we will end today. Please, let’s sincerely ponder how what we’ve said today, impacts our current lives. And then, with the help of Almighty God, set out to make the necessary changes nuh. Because it’s so sad to see God’s people involved in so much negative stuff, when the good stuff is so easy to come by.
It just takes the effort of a few serious and mature Christians to get together and decide to do away with all the petty, unnecessary nonsense that’s happening in the body of Christ. Much LOVE!
…Christ’s heart must certainly bleed…when He looks down and sees…the large amount of ungodly behaviour…being exhibited by His people…
13 Mar 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: abhor evil, absolute truth, appreciate what Jesus endured for us, awesome truth, awful pain, basic properties of our faith, bleed and dehydrate to death, Bruh David, carrying His cross, cease from anger, cling to good, closer to Jesus, concentration, consellors of peace, crown of thorns, deceit, dentist, destroyed, devise evil, dissimulation, don't do evil, empathy, evil, evildoers, false witness, fear of the Lord, forced to undergo, forsake wrath, free, free at last, fret not, genuine goodness, God's mercy, God-like characteristics, guile, heavenly account, human rights and justice, hung up on the cross, hypocrisy, immortalized words, in mind of Jesus, indisputable fact, inherit the earth, inhumane treatment, joy, long and short of the story, loony bin, LOVE, lustful desire, lying tongue, mental and psychological degradation, mental effect, nightmare, painful trials, piercing of a sword, pleading to Almighty God, promotes health, psyche, rat race life, reap untold joy, reconciling sacrifice, Rest in the Lord, reverence of God, rewards, righteousness., Roman soldiers, root canal, scourging, seek peace, serious suffering, snowstorm, snowy conditions, sow peace, speak truth, sympathy, terrible pains, thank God, the Lord hears the righteous, the Lord never leaves us in the lurch, tongue of the wise, trauma, trials and tribulations, True LOVE, truthful lip, wait pateintly on god, weather forecast, whipping, wicked schemes, wisdom, worldly things
Romans 12:9. Let LOVE be without dissimulation (hypocrisy). Abhor that which is evil; cleave (cling) to that which is good.
Oh Friends, oh Friends, I’m free…! Free at last! Thank God I’m free at last from that awful pain!
Wow! I certainly hope I never have to undergo such trauma again nuh people. It was indeed a nightmare, or rather a ‘daymare’ yesterday, (smile) because that pain raged for most of the day, despite my best human efforts to alleviate it, and my pleading to Almighty God.
Believe me, I don’t think I’ve ever pleaded for God’s mercy as I did yesterday. And to make matters worse, for once the weatherman’s forecast was correct; by mid-morning the snowstorm was in full swing.
Thankfully though, the Lord never leaves us in the lurch, for my young daughter was at home and I enlisted, or rather conscripted her to drive me to the dentist, because with the pain shooting up every few seconds, I don’t know if my concentration would have been good enough to drive in those dangerous snowy conditions.
Thank you mih young D! Much rewards were surely deposited in your heavenly account yesterday. And I have to chuckle here, because she had great empathy for me, but not much sympathy, since she had the same kind of problem not too long ago, so she indeed knew what I was going through.
The long and short of the story though is that it wasn’t the tooth we had recently fixed, but the one directly behind it. My dentist wasn’t thrilled in having to do another root canal procedure. And in the thirty odd years I’ve been going to him, I’ve never seen him work so hard, both physically and mentally on one tooth, as there seemed to be some slight complications in the tooth’s structure.
Ah Friends, I wouldn’t wish that kind of pain on my worst enemy, and if I had had to endure it for another day, I would surely have ended up in the loony bin. And that’s no joke, because it’s the kind of pain that not only physically affects your face and your brain, but also has a big mental effect on your psyche.
My mouth is still sore from all the pulling and prodding and needles, and I have to be careful and eat gingerly on the left side, but I can certainly live with that for a few days.
There’s one significant thing though I want to address here mih breddren, and it’s when we get all these terrible pains, do they ever put us in mind of Jesus? Meaning, that if our pains seem so severe and heartrending, do we ever consider what Jesus’ pain must have felt like?
The scourging, the whipping, the crown of thorns, the mental and psychological degradation he was forced to undergo from the Roman soldiers, then having to carry His cross and be nailed to it and hung up in the hot noonday sun to simply bleed and dehydrate to death!
Do we ever consider the real torture He went through for us, and then think how lucky we are, that most likely we will never have to suffer such inhumane treatment? I surely hope so.
Yuh better believe though Friends, the full measure of it all was certainly brought home to me in the last couple of days. And it makes me even more grateful for His reconciling sacrifice. I hope when you go through similar painful trials, that it will also bring you closer to Jesus.
And I guess that’s why the Lord allows us to go through such trials and tribulations, because it’s only with some serious suffering that we can ever truly realize and appreciate what Jesus endured for us. Enough ‘preachifying’ though. (smile)
Now let’s turn to our Bit. ‘Let LOVE be without dissimulation (hypocrisy). Abhor that which is evil; cleave (cling) to that which is good.’
Oh my fellow believers, that is such a rich and all-embracing statement, mirroring the basic properties of our faith: true LOVE and genuine goodness. That’s what Christ came to earth for, and died for; to instil those most worthy and God-like characteristics in us.
But do we truly appreciate them? Not nearly as much as we should, otherwise we wouldn’t be living the rat-race life, the overarching lustful desire for worldly things that’s so characteristic of today’s society.
Anyway, let’s continue showcasing scriptures which reflect the absolute truth of our Bit. And we’ll begin with some immortalized words of Bruh David from Psalm 37; the true state of the wicked.
‘Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devises (schemes) to pass. Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil (for it only causes harm). For evildoers shall be cut off (destroyed): but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.’ (Ps.37:7-9)
Oh my people, words of awesome truth, from someone who lived them!
And here are some more words of awesome truth, this time from Cousin Sol, as he contrasts the wise and the foolish in Proverbs Chapter 12. ‘He that speaketh truth showeth forth (declares) righteousness: but a false witness deceit. There is that (one who) speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is (promotes) health.
The lip of truth (truthful lip) shall be established for ever: but a lying tongue is but for a moment. Deceit is in the heart of them that imagine (devise) evil: but to the counsellors of peace is joy.’ (Prov.12:17-20)
And isn’t that an indisputable fact my fellow believers? Those who sow peace, do reap untold joy!
And we’ll conclude this series of messages on LOVE and goodness versus evil, with more immortalized words from Bruh David, from Psalm 34; the Lord hears the righteous.
‘Come, ye children, hearken unto me: I will teach you the fear (reverence) of the Lord. What man is he that desireth life, and LOVETH many days, that he may see good? Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile (deceit). Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.’ (Ps.34:11-14)
Yes mih Friends, if we desire to live a good and long life, as most of us do, then we need to stop doing evil, and instead do good and seek peace, human rights and justice!
Please, let’s take those words to heart today nuh, RIGHT NOW, for they are truly words of absolute, unadulterated wisdom! Much LOVE!
…to work for Jesus…the basic qualifications are TRUE LOVE…AND SINCERE, HEARTFELT GOODNESS…
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