the Lord’s Sabbath

The Importance of Christians Acknowledging that Jesus Christ is Their ONLY True Hope in this World!

31 Aug 2025 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a disciplined mind, a spiritual source, be of good cheer, beats so imperfectly, believers are filled with doubts and fear, believest thou this, Christian themes of faith and grace, come unto me all ye that labour, crapaud smoke yuh pipe, each restless heart, emotional weariness, empowers to overcome adversity, faith, filled with wonder, find rest unto your souls, For God hath not given us a spirit of fear, gentle and humble, give thanks and praise, God will be our God, he that believeth in me, holy spirit, hope perseverance, I am still, I am strong, I am the resurrection and the life, I glimpse eternity, I will give you reat, Jesus Christ, Jesus is our only sure hope, Jesus your Guiding Light, Jesus your Lord and Saviour, Josh Groban, learn of me, LOVE, meek and lowly in heart, mercy, my heart burdened be, my soul so weary, my yoke is easy and my burden light, no life without its hunger, o thou of little faith, of power love and a sound mind, Peter walked on water, Pilot in the times of storm, relying on a divine power, sacrifices of praise, salvation, stand on mountains, strength, strife-filled times, take my yoke upon you, the glorious truth, the great invitation, the Lord's Sabbath, the new heaven and earth, the new Jerusalem, the renewal and regeneration of our souls, the support of another person, the troubles and challenges you face, though he were dead yet shall he live, to be more than I can be, to walk on stormy seas, truth, wait here in the silence, when I am down, when troubles come, whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die, why did you doubt, wipe away all tears sorrow pain and death, wisdom, you come and sit with me, You Raise Me Up

Matthew 11:28. Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

And as always, in the rotation of days, we come right back to Sunday, the first day of the week, and the Lord’s Sabbath, which requires us to attend His sanctuary to give thanks and praise and receive regeneration of our souls, minds, spirits and bodies. Today, on this last day of August 2025, we’ll open our worship session with a most appropriate song for these vexing, uncertain and strife-filled times.

It’s titled ‘You Raise Me Up,’ and was originally released on the 2001 Secret Garden album “Once in a Red Moon”, then was used for commemorations of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks despite not having been released in America yet. Then in 2003, Josh Groban released the American version, and it became a huge hit.

And what is the meaning behind the song? This commentary explains it thus: “You Raise Me Up” is an inspiring ballad about finding strength, hope, and perseverance through the support of another person, often interpreted as God or a spiritual source, especially during difficult times.

The lyrics describe a person’s emotional weariness and how the presence of a LOVING “you” empowers them to overcome adversity, “stand on mountains,” “walk on stormy seas,” and achieve more than they could alone. And for many Christians, the “you” in the song represents God, with the lyrics reflecting Christian themes of faith, grace, and relying on a divine power.’

So, now that we have some idea of what the song is about, let’s offer up sweet sacrifices of praise in a heartfelt soulful version that will have heaven singing along with us. Singing: ‘When I am down and oh, my soul so weary When troubles come and my heart burdened be Then I am still and wait here in the silence Until You come and sit awhile with me

(Chorus: You raise me up so I can stand on mountains You raise me up to walk on stormy seas I am strong when I am on Your shoulders You raise me up to more than I can be: You raise me up so I can stand on mountains You raise me up to walk on stormy seas I am strong when I am on Your shoulders You raise me up to more than I can be.)

There is no life, no life without its hunger Each restless heart beats so imperfectly But when You come and I am filled with wonder Sometimes, I think I glimpse eternity. (Chorus: You raise me up so I can stand on mountains You raise me up to walk on stormy seas I am strong when I am on Your shoulders You raise me up to more than I can be.

Yes, You raise me up so I can stand on mountains (You raise me up, I can stand on mountains) You raise me up to walk on stormy seas (Walk on stormy seas) And I am strong when I am on Your shoulders Oh, you raise me up to more than I can be Yes, You raise me up to more than I can be.’

And that’s the undeniable, indisputable and glorious truth my friends! For when Jesus is your Lord and Saviour, your Guiding Light and Pilot in the times of storm, then He will certainly raise you up above the troubles and challenges you face. And in His Great Invitation, we are welcomed to release all our burdens, weariness, stress and strain to Him and then enjoy His refreshing relief.

Listen to His marvellous 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 (gentle and humble) in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt. 11:28-30) Now where else can you ever receive such a genuine and welcoming invitation eh? Nowhere else but with Jesus!

And when you’re talking about walking on stormy seas, who else can help you do it but Jesus, as He showed when He went walking to the disciples on the stormy sea. Obviously, when the disciples saw Him, they thought it was a ghost and cried out for fear. ‘But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer (take courage); it is I; be not afraid. And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.

And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. But when he saw the wind boisterous (violent), he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?’ (Matt. 14:27-31)

And that’s the problem today with so many believers; we are filled with doubts and fear, that’s why our lives are so topsy turvy, and not as calm and peaceful as they ought to be. We need to remember these very reassuring words of Bruh Paul to Timothy and put them into action in our lives. ‘For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound (disciplined) mind.’ (2 Tim. 1:7) That’s what we need to hear continually pounding in our ears every day, not the foolish fear that Satan tries to instill in us.

And I like that last verse which talks about ‘there’s no life without its hunger Each restless heart beats so imperfectly But when You come and I am filled with wonder Sometimes, I think I glimpse eternity.’ And we have eternity right here with us, for remember what Jesus said to Martha when she queried His statement that her brother Lazarus would rise again? Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead (may die), yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?’ (John 11:25-26)

And if you call yourself a Christian, then you’d better believe it, otherwise crapaud smoke yuh pipe! And don’t forget that John saw the new heaven and new earth, the new Jerusalem, where God will be our God and dwell with us, and we shall be His people, and He’ll wipe away all tears, sorrow, death, crying and pain, etc. etc. (Rev. 21: 1-4) I don’t know about you all, but I can hardly wait for that day to come! (smile) Much LOVE!

…trusting in Jesus…is the only sure hope…we have in this world…

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

The Importance of Believers understanding they have direct access to God’s throne through Jesus Christ!

20 Oct 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: all ye that labour and are heavy laden, as the manner of some is, as ye see the day approaching, assurance of being heard by God, Bible, Christ as a son over his own house, come boldly to the throne of grace, come to seek and save, come unto me, confidence by faith in Christ, draw near with boldness, encouraging, exhorting one another, faith, fellowship, find grace to help, find rest unto your souls, freedom of speech, gentle and humble, god, guilt and sin, have stopped my mouth, he that built all things is God, holy spirit, I will give you rest, in time of need, in whom we have boldness, Indian summer, Jehovah is the sinner's freind, Jesus Christ, Jesus fills the throne, know the hell of sin within, lay your load at Jesus feet, lean of me, LOVE, makes the blind to see, meek and lowly in heart, mercy, my burden light, my yoke is easy, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves, obtain mercy, pay our sin debt in full, poor bankrupt souls, reassuring, salvation, set the prisoner free, sweet sacrifices of praise, sympathize with our weaknesses, take my yoke upon you, that which was lost, the great invitation, the Lord will take you in, the Lord's Sabbath, the right of entering into god's presence, the sinner lost He came to save, the Son of man, touched with the feeling of our infirmities, truth, was in all points tempted like us, was without sin, we have not a high priest, wisdom, ye wretched sinners come

Hebrews 4:16. Let us therefore come boldly (confidently) unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

And another beautiful Indian summer day is in the offing for the Lord’s Sabbath. That makes it even more encouraging and intriguing for us to make our way to His sanctuary to give Him praise and thanks for all His many blessings and to fellowship with other believers, as it is right to do. The Bible tells us in no uncertain terms: ‘Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.’ (Heb. 10:25)

And it is necessary to pray on one’s own, but worshipping together gives the chance to encourage each other, to strengthen and stir up each other which can only be gained by fellowshipping together. And having said all of that, let’s get right to our song for today. It’s one we all know and like, with the apt title of ‘Come Boldy to the throne of Grace.’ Yes, it’s very encouraging and reassuring, so let’s offer up sweet sacrifices of praise in a sincere, soulful, mid-tempo version of this marvellous song.

Singing: ‘Come boldly to the throne of grace, Ye wretched sinners come, and lay your load at Jesus feet, And plead what He has done. How can I come? Some soul may say, I’m lame and cannot walk; My guilt and sin have stopped my mouth, I sigh, but dare not talk. Come boldly to the throne of grace, Though lost, and blind, and lame; Jehovah is the sinner’s friend, And ever was the same. He makes the dead to hear His voice; He makes the blind to see, The sinner lost, He came to save, And set the prisoner free.

Come boldly to the throne of grace, For Jesus fills the throne; and those He kills, He makes alive; He hears the sigh or groan; Poor bankrupt souls, Who feel and know, the hell of sin within; Come Boldly to the throne of grace; The Lord will take you in. Come Boldly to the throne of grace; The Lord will take you in…the Lord will take you in…Yes the Lord will take you in…take you in.’

And that’s no lie my brethren! If you come boldly or confidently to the throne of grace, our ever-faithful God will surely take you in. That’s one thing about Him, He never turns away anyone who comes to Him in all sincerity and truth. And what’s the basis for this confidence? It all springs from these Bible verses in Hebrews.

‘For we do not have a high priest who cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities (is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses), but was in all points tempted like as we are (but one who was tempted in every way that we are), yet was without sin. Let us therefore come boldly (confidently) unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. Let us therefore draw near with boldness unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain (receive) mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.’ (Heb. 4:15-16)

Oh friends, isn’t it wonderful that we have a high priest who can empathize with our problems, because He also faced them, but was without sin, thus was eligible to die on the cross at Calvary and pay our sin debt in full? It most certainly is! That means we can take any problem to Him and He will understand. There are also a couple of other scriptures that encourage us to have confidence and boldness in our faith.

This one also comes from Hebrews. ‘For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God. And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after (afterward); But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.’ (Heb. 3:4-6)

Yes my people, every one else is a servant in someone else’s house, but Christ as the Son of God, has His own house to which we belong, if we continue to be confident and faithful to Him. And this scripture from the passage in Ephesians that speaks about the Unsearchable Riches of Christ also encourages us to have boldness and confidence. It says: ‘In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of (in) him.’ (Eph. 3:12)

And the scholars explain it thus: ‘This verse affirms that Christians have boldness (freedom of speech before God) and access (the right of entering His presence) with confidence (assurance of being heard by God), by the faith of him (through relying upon Christ to gain God’s ear).’ We certainly can’t ask for any more than that my fellow believers. But the wonderful thing about our God is that He gives us more through Christ Jesus, even though we don’t deserve it.

And if we look at the statements of the song, they all claim that we are lost, blind, lame, unworthy, sinners, guilty etc., not worthy to come to Jesus, but there are many facts to the contrary. Remember what Jesus Himself said? ‘For the Son of man is come to seek and save that which was lost.’ (Luke 19:10) He is also the friend to each and every sinner. Was from the beginning, and will be until the very end. But this one line tells the whole story ‘Ye wretched sinners come, and lay your load at Jesus feet.’

For what does Jesus offer to those who are overburdened? 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)

Yes my fellow saints, that’s Christ invitation to all and sundry to come to Him, regardless of your woes. There’s no one He will refuse. So please, let’s take advantage of the invitation today nuh, and go to Jesus for help, whatever kind of help we may need, because He is the ONLY ONE who can solve all our problems, and will certainly not turn us away, despite our sorry plight. In fact, the sorrier our plight, the more Jesus desires us to come to Him for help. Let’s never forget that! Much LOVE!

…Jesus is only a sincere plea away…for help

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit 21 March 2021 Ephesians 3:17.

21 Mar 2021 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: according to his riches of his glory, Christ is or strength, Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith, divine enablement, filled with the fullness of God, God would grant you, he will keep my words, heaven's gate to open wide, if a man love me, Jesus Loves Me, know the love of christ, let them come to me, LOVE, obedience, rooted and grounded in love, sucfully live the Christian life., taking children on his knee, the Lord's Sabbath, walking with me on my way

Ephesians 3:17. That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye be rooted and grounded in LOVE,

Gather round friends, gather round your technological devices let’s have worship! Let there be praise and singing, adulation and exultation of God’s holy name throughout His universe! For it is the right thing to do on the Lord’s Sabbath! And the Lord looked down from His high heaven and saw that His people were being obedient to His word, and He said: ‘It is good!’ And God is especially grateful when we make the necessary effort, despite the pandemic lockdowns, to praise and worship Him, because it means that our hearts are in the right place, our motives are sincere, and that’s what He most desires of us.

So let’s begin by singing one of our favourite songs of worship nuh, Jesus LOVES Me. Yes mih bredrin, we going to mash that up today. Glory be! But before we do, here is some background info on the song, from the Wikipedia website.”Jesus LOVES Me” is a Christian hymn written by Anna Bartlett Warner (1827–1915). The lyrics first appeared as a poem in the context of an 1860 novel called Say and Seal, written by her older sister Susan Warner (1819–1885), in which the words were spoken as a comforting poem to a dying child.

The tune was added in 1862 by William Batchelder Bradbury (1816–1868). Along with his tune, Bradbury added his own chorus “Yes, Jesus LOVES me, Yes, Jesus LOVES me…” After publication as a song it became one of the most popular Christian hymns in churches around the world, especially among children.So let’s belt it out in a nice, sparkling, scintillating, harmonious, up-tempo version nuh.

As one sweet voice: ‘Jesus LOVES me! This I know, For the Bible tells me so; Little ones to Him belong; They are weak, but He is strong. (Refrain: Yes, Jesus LOVES me! Yes, Jesus LOVES me! Yes, Jesus LOVES me! The Bible tells me so.) Jesus LOVES me! This I know, As He LOVED so long ago, Taking children on His knee, Saying, “Let them come to Me.” (Refrain) – Jesus LOVES me still today, Walking with me on my way, Wanting as a friend to give Light and LOVE to all who live.

(Refrain) – Jesus LOVES me! He who died Heaven’s gate to open wide; He will wash away my sin, Let His little child come in. (Refrain) – Jesus LOVES me! He will stay Close beside me all the way; Thou hast bled and died for me, I will henceforth live for Thee. Yes, Jesus LOVES me! Yes, Jesus LOVES me! Yes, Jesus LOVES me! The Bible tells me so. Yes, Jesus LOVES me! Yes, Jesus LOVES me! Yes, Jesus LOVES me! The Bible tells me so.’

And isn’t that the awesome truth friends? Why else would Jesus sacrifice Himself for us on the cross at Calvary, taking such brutal punishment for sins He had not committed eh? There could only be one reason: LOVE! True compassion for us, not wanting us to end up in eternal damnation with the evil Satan.

And the website God Tube gives us this comforting explanation. ‘The Bible tells us that God LOVES each and every one of us, despite our sins and faults. Be comforted by the simple lyrics of ‘Jesus LOVES Me’ and remember that our Creator is almighty and all-LOVING. He is with us each step of the day and will never leave our side. We may be weak, but He is our strength.’ Now that ought to boost our trust and faith and strength in Him!

Oh friends, it all comes down to that marvellous and wonderful word LOVE! Hear Jesus when He spoke to the disciples re the promise of the Holy Spirit. ‘He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that LOVETH me: and he that LOVETH me shall be LOVED of my Father, and I will LOVE him, and will manifest (reveal) myself to him. Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man LOVE me, he will keep my words: and my Father will LOVE him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode (home) with him.’ (John 14:21-23)

And the scholars tell us that ‘the divine indwelling of verse 23, is conditional on LOVE, and obedience to Jesus’ words. The Word of the gospel is primarily (though not exclusively) in view here.’ Try as we want friends, to be true believers, we can’t get away from LOVE, or obedience to Jesus words; one leads naturally to the other, they are inseparable.

And that’s why Bruh Paul prayed thus for the Ephesians, and we also ought to pray for ourselves and others. ‘That he (God) would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye be rooted and grounded in LOVE, May be able to comprehend (understand) with all saints what is the breadth (width), and length, and depth and height; And to know the LOVE of Christ which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with the fullness of God.’ (Eph. 3:16-19)

Oh my people, Christ’s LOVE for us is so big, so enormous, so wide, deep, long, and high, that it’s only through the help of His Holy Spirit dwelling in us, that we can ever come close to understanding it! Yes, we need divine enablement to successfully live the Christian life. That’s the only way that the characteristics and virtues of God will ever develop in us. So as we go about our business today, let’s concentrate on those two immortal words nuh; LOVE and obedience, for they are the basic foundation of our very lives in Christ Jesus. Much LOVE!

…as Uncle Charles (Charles Stanley) likes to say…obey God…and leave all the consequences to Him…that’s divine wisdom…

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8

Today’s Scrip-Bit 28 February 2021 Ephesians 6:10.

28 Feb 2021 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a victory to be won, be strong in the Lord, bear up under the pressure, daily walking close to thee, give me the power to go through, glory in my infirmities, I am strong, I am weak but thou art strong, in the power of his might, Jesus keep me from all wrong, just a closer walk with thee, let me walk close to thee, live by the power of God toward you, LOVE, my grace is sufficient for thee, my power is made perfect in weakness, Oral roberts Ministries, Richard Roberts, sacrifice of praise, song of praise, take my hand Lord Jesus, technological means, the Lord giveth power to the faint, the Lord's Sabbath, the one and only superstar, the power of Christ may rest upon me, the Spirit of God is strong in you, there's a race to be run, thorn in the flesh, Triune God, unable to cope, we confess strength with our mouths, when I am weak then I am strong

Ephesians 6:10. Finally, my brethren, Be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might.

Gather round friends, gather round, it’s that time again, the Lord’s Sabbath! That means it’s time for praise and worship, joyful togetherness by technological means, for our physical sanctuaries are still mostly shut down. But as we keep saying, worshipful togetherness by any means is preferable to no worshipful togetherness at all.

So let’s do away with the talking, (smile) and get on with the praise and worship nuh. And today’s song of praise is one in which we don’t know the author’s name, but its words are so powerful and true that it has lasted for some time and has become a favourite of believers all over the world. It’s titled: ‘Just a closer walk with thee.’

And friends, I can assure us that there’s no better person to walk this earthly journey in companionship with than Jesus Christ! For He is the way, the truth, the life and the light, also the author and finisher of our faith path. Yes, it just makes sense to follow the one who first blazed the awesome path that you desire to tread, because He knows the way best. So let’s raise our sacrifice of praise heavenwards nuh, with loud but sweet harmonious voices, and hearts filled with sincere LOVE for our Triune God.

An easy rocking but passionate version. ‘I am weak but Thou art strong; Jesus, keep me from all wrong; I’ll be satisfied as long As I walk, let me walk close to Thee. (Refrain: Just a closer walk with Thee, Grant it, Jesus, is my plea, Daily walking close to thee, Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.) Thro’ this world of toil and snares, If I falter, Lord, who cares? Who with me my burden shares? None but Thee, dear Lord, none but Thee. [Refrain]When my feeble life is o’er, Time for me will be no more; Guide me gently, safely o’er To Thy kingdom shore, to Thy shore.

[Refrain: Just a closer walk with Thee, Grant it, Jesus, is my plea, Daily walking close to Thee, Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.) Take my hand Lord Jesus, take my hand. Take my hand Lord Jesus, take my hand. There’s a race to be run, there’s a victory to be won, every hour, give me power to go through. Take my hand and let me walk with thee, Blessed Jesus let it be…’

Oh mih people, what wonderful, passionate sacrificial praise! All heaven was singing along with us. And why not eh, since we were praising the One and Only Superstar in the universe! Now hear what the website Hymnary.org tells us re the song. ‘In that song, we acknowledge our human inability to live righteously, but we also express awareness of the grace and strength that God gives us in our daily walk. Even such an esteemed saint as the apostle Paul acknowledged his need for this grace: “But he [God] said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” … For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:9a, 10b ESV)

Yes friends, when Bruh Paul asked the Lord three times to take away the thorn from his flesh, whatever it was, the Lord simply looked at him and calmly told him to ignore the thorn, for His grace was sufficient for him to handle the problem, because our weakness brings out His perfect power and strength. What more could Bruh Paul say to that statement eh, but: ‘Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities (weaknesses), that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.’ (2 Cor. 12:9b-10)

Glory be, mih people! That means when we are weak the power of God takes over on our behalf! What could be better than that eh? Nothing really! That’s why the Good Book tells us in Joel: ‘Let the weak say I am strong.’ And I discovered an excellent explanation on that subject by Richard Roberts of the Oral Roberts ministries. He writes: ‘The Lord promises again and again in His Word that He will strengthen us. He knows that, as human beings, we often feel our weakness to the point where we don’t believe we CAN be strong.

In Joel 3:10 we read, “Let the weak say, I am strong.” Notice that strength is first something we confess with our mouths. We SAY to ourselves, “I am strong.” Note, too, that the Bible doesn’t say we were strong or that we will be strong. It says we are to speak to ourselves in the NOW of our circumstances and say, “I AM strong!” What a good word that is to us when we are feeling weak…unable to cope or to bear up under the pressure, to be patient or have courage. In that very moment…in that very circumstance…we can claim, by our faith, the provision of God to us: “I AM STRONG!”

On what is our strength based? Our strength is not in ourselves but in Christ Jesus who lives within us by the power of the Holy Spirit. In Isaiah 40:28–29, the prophet said, “Hast thou not known? Hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? There is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.”Our strength does not come from our own abilities or power, but from the wisdom and power of God, which is poured into us on a daily basis any time we admit our weakness and ask Him to replace our weakness with His strength.’

I like how he explains that. I hope you do too. Then there’s this further scripture from Bruh Paul to the Corinthians. ‘Since you seek a proof of Christ speaking in me, which to you-ward is not weak, but is mighty in you. For though he was crucified through weakness, yet he liveth by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but we shall live by the power of God toward you.’ (2 Cor. 13:3-4) Now isn’t that marvellous and very reassuring? Yes, it certainly is. The same power that was with Christ in His weakness, will also be with us in ours! No wonder we worship and glorify Him and call Him Lord and Saviour.

And we’ll let Richard Roberts have today’s last word. (smile) ‘The apostle Paul wrote, “Finally, my brethren, Be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might.” (Ephesians 6:10). Take that as God’s word to you today! You can be strong in any situation or circumstance you face today because the Spirit of God is strong within you!’ Much LOVE!

…God plus you…equals Almighty strength…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 13 November 2016 2 Timothy 3:17.

13 Nov 2016 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: adventure, adversities, affection, believers in Jesus Christ, blood, by water, charter of salvation, Christ-like, Christians, church, conforming to God's will, consummation of peace, correctness, encouragement, enthusiasm, equipped, eternal life, face the upcoming week, faith, fellowship, fight the good fight of faith, flee these things, for her life he died, fruit of our lips, furnished, God's guidebook, God's inspired Word, godliness, good works, grace, hardships, heresies, his holy bride, inspiration of God, Jesus Christ, lay hold on eternal life, live eternally, LOVE, lowly, man of God, material wealth, maturity, measure up, meek, meekness, ministry, money, new creation, obedience, passion, patience, perfect, perseverance, phenomenal, praise, progress, relaxation, Remembrance Day, rent asunder, rest, reverence, rewards, righteousness, sacrifice of praise, saints, salvation, schisms, standards of righteousness, steadfastness, strength, sweet communion, thanksgiving, the Book of answers, the church's one foundation, the Lord's Sabbath, the man of God, the morn of song, the Word, toil, tribulation, trust in God, tumult, union with God, victorious, war, weeping, woes, worship

2 Timothy 3:17. That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished (equipped) unto all good works.

Ah friends, that wonderful day called Sunday, the Lord’s Sabbath, has rolled around once more! It’s a day of rest and relaxation, but more importantly one also of worship and fellowship amongst Christians.

That means, if we are able, we ought to get together with other believers in Jesus Christ to sing and offer praise and thanksgiving for His goodness to us, to listen to His word, as well as receive encouragement and strength to face the upcoming week.

Now let’s begin with a sacrifice of praise, the fruit of our lips, by singing the inspirational hymn, ‘The Church is One Foundation.’ With sincere enthusiasm and passion friends: ‘The church’s one foundation is Jesus Christ, her Lord; she is his new creation by water and the Word. From heaven he came and sought her to be his holy bride; with his own blood he bought her, and for her life he died.

Elect from every nation, yet one o’er all the earth; her charter of salvation: one Lord, one faith, one birth. One holy name she blesses, partakes one holy food, and to one hope she presses, with every grace endued. Though with a scornful wonder the world sees her oppressed, by schisms rent asunder, by heresies distressed, yet saints their watch are keeping; their cry goes up: “How long?” and soon the night of weeping shall be the morn of song.

Mid toil and tribulation, and tumult of her war, she waits the consummation of peace forevermore, till with the vision glorious her longing eyes are blest, and the great church victorious shall be the church at rest. Yet she on earth hath union with God the Three in One, and mystic sweet communion with those whose rest is won: O happy ones and holy! Lord, give us grace that we like them, the meek and lowly, may live eternally.’

Glory to God my people for such a wonderful worship song, written way back at the end of the 19^th century by the British pastor Samuel J. Stone! And over a century later, it’s still a worship favourite. I wonder if the songs we’ve recently penned will be sung so victoriously a century from now eh? Who knows? That’s even if the world is still around the way we know it.

But regardless of what exists then, right now we have to go back to our Bit of a few days ago. I fully intended to continue it on Friday, but that was Remembrance Day, and the other Bit about a man laying down his life for his friend, just fit better. Then yesterday, the scripture about the true light, also seemed to be a better fit, per the direction in which I was being led. (smile)

So let’s refresh our memories a tad with the verse before our Bit. ‘All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.’ (2 Tim.3:16) And we said that the Bible was God’s guidebook to us for earthly righteous living, and though it was physically written by men, it was authored by God, through His divine inspiration.

And our Bit tells us of the very important reason why the Lord authored it. ‘That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished (equipped) unto all good works.’ And the scholars told us that ‘God’s inspired Word, properly used and applied provides all we need for life and ministry.’

Glory Hallelujah my people! We don’t need anything else to live this life proficiently, capably, righteously than God’s Book of Answers!

Now let’s check out some scriptures on the subject. Listen to Bruh Paul admonish Timothy in his earlier letter. After talking about the LOVE of money being the root of all kinds of evil, and how some have ruined themselves through covetousness, Bruh Paul tells him.

‘But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, LOVE, patience, meekness. Fight the Good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art called, and hast professed (confessed) a good profession (confession) before many witnesses.’ (1 Tim.6:11-12)

Oh friends, all of that also applies to us today, if we want to be considered a man or woman of God!

And the scholars offer these interesting explanations. ‘6:11. Flee these things means shun a LOVE for money (v.10) and the striving for material wealth (v.9) with all its resulting woes. Follow after means pursue. Righteousness is practical correctness, conforming to God’s will in one’s thinking and acting.

Godliness is proper reverence for, and obedience to, God. Faith is a trust in God that grows stronger. LOVE is a maturing affection for God and man. Patience is perseverance or steadfastness in life and service. Meekness is gentleness.’

There we have it my brethren; a chart against which we can measure our progress and success in being a true man, or woman of God.

And the scholars continue: ‘6:12. The good fight concerns the daily struggle with sin in the Christian life, and the hardships and adversities in the ministry. A genuine believer demonstrates the reality of his faith by being engaged in this warfare. Lay hold on eternal life does not negate the fact that a believer now possesses spiritual life (John 3:36); rather, it speaks of fully realizing or appropriating salvation as the believer matures.’

Yes friends, those few words do say a lot about our Christian faith, and I think it’s a good time for us to take stock of our personal faith, or maturity, whether we’re making any progress or not. So let’s take a few moments sometime today, find a quiet spot and see how we measure up against those standards of righteousness nuh.

Let’s see if we are truly fighting the good fight, really involved in the spiritual warfare; see how we doing with shunning the LOVE of money and the material things of the world. Let’s check to see if our faith is as strong as it ought to be, if we’re persevering and steadfast and gentle…and all the other righteous attitudes and capabilities we need to live a Christ-like life, for that’s supposed to be our earthly goal.

And as always, wherever we find ourselves lacking, let’s turn to our heavenly Father and confidently ask for His always available help. Much LOVE!

…a Christian’s life is not an easy go…but the adventure involved is worth it…and the rewards at the end are truly phenomenal…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 6 September 2015 Ephesians 2:4

06 Sep 2015 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a man lay down his life for his friends, a righteous man, Christ died for the ungodly, come to God for succour, comfort, condemn the world, Creator, Daily Meditations, dilly-dally, do whatsoever I command you, doubt, emotional humans, faith, fellow believers, foolish pride, for God so loved the world, for His great love, fragile, friends, give thanks and praise, God who is rich in mercy, greater love hath no man, have everlasting life, Havelock Ellis, he gave his only begotten son, heavenly Father, human sexuality, LOVE, lukewarm, mercy, No faith is our own that we hare not arduously won, our Higher Power is constant, provider, regeneration of our spirit, renewal of faith, sacrifice, save the world, self-pity, shout joyfully, sinners, spirituality, struggle alone, substitutionary sacrifice, succour, surrender, the cross at Calvary, the Lord's Sabbath, the rock of ages, the same yesterday today and forever, trust, vicarious death, wherewith He loved us, while we were yet sinners christ died for us, whoever believeth in him should not perish, without strength

Ephesians 2:4. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great LOVE wherewith he LOVED us.

Aye mih Christian breddren, it’s that most wonderful day we call Sunday, when most of us celebrate the Lord’s Sabbath! It’s supposed to be a day of peace and rest and preparation for the upcoming week. But it also means that we ought to be heading out to the Lord’s sanctuary to meet and greet fellow believers and sing and dance and shout joyfully, and give thanks and praise to our heavenly Father, our Creator and generous Provider!

It’s called regeneration of our spirit! So let’s not dilly dally and come up with all sorts of feeble excuses not to go eh. Let’s get ourselves off to church!

And to buoy that directive, we have a rather pertinent quote from (Henry) Havelock Ellis, (1859-1939), an English physician, writer, progressive intellectual, social reformer and student of human sexuality. Hn! Havelock was really into life sir! (smile) Anyhow, he is reputed to have said that ‘No faith is our own that we have not arduously won.’

And that my people has a whole lot of truth in it, because as my One More Day Daily Meditations for People with Chronic Illness points out: ‘Everything that touches our lives influences our level of trust and spirituality.’

We are all fragile and emotional humans, so there will obviously be times when our faith rises and falls due to the circumstances that surround us. We all have rough times when doubts tend to creep in, especially when we lose things or people that we always expected to be around.

But, as my One More Day Daily Meditations further reminds us: ‘We can begin to regain that faith by remembering that our Higher Power is constant, even when our faith is not. We humans fluctuate between doubt and trust, but that doesn’t diminish the care that is always available to us. We need only surrender to that truth, and we find comfort.’

And isn’t that the gospel truth Friends! Our God is totally constant; the same yesterday, today and forever! Like the rock of ages, He’s always there ready to help and comfort us! But we have to come to Him to get that peace and comfort and renewal of faith. And that’s where so many of us fall down, because of foolish pride, self-pity or whatever, we refuse to come to God for succour.

But here again, the Daily Meditations reminds us that: ‘My faith – in myself and in my Higher Power – is built upon my awareness that I don’t have to struggle alone. I am strengthened when I admit to my spiritual needs.’

More indisputable truth Friends! There is absolutely no need for us to struggle alone when we have our heavenly Father always there to comfort and care for us.

Oh Friends, by refusing to go to God in faith and trust, we are only making our lives much more difficult than is really necessary. When we have a Bit like ours, we’re supposed to be running to God, not away from Him. ‘But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great LOVE wherewith he LOVED us.’

Yuh hear that mih people, our God is rich in mercy and has such a great LOVE for us! We should be embracing that fact with all our hearts, minds, bodies and souls; just wallowing in His mercy and LOVE, instead of ignoring it, or just being lukewarm towards it. Remember how Jesus promised to spew out the Laodicean church because they were only lukewarm? (Rev.3:14-16) Well it’s the same thing He’s liable to do with us, if we’re not enthused about Him and all that He stands for.

Now today I want to look at some scriptures that corroborate our Bit. And we’ll begin with these immortal words of Jesus that every believer ought to know. ‘For God so LOVED the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that world through him might be saved.’ (John 3:16-17)

Tell me people, after hearing those words from Jesus, and then seeing Him fulfill the act of saving us by sacrificing Himself on the cross of Calvary, how could we not believe the Father’s great LOVE eh? I just can’t understand it.

Now listen to Bruh Paul to the church at Rome. ‘For when we were yet without strength, in due (at the right) time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure (perhaps) for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth (demonstrates) his LOVE toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.’ (Rom.5:6-8)

Oh Friends, how can we even think about doubting God’s great LOVE for us after all of that eh? Chuh!

And the scholars’ words on that last verse might bring home the situation to us more forcefully. ‘5:8. Christ died for us: His death was vicarious. That is, He did not die merely for our benefit but in our place. His was a substitutionary sacrifice.’

Yeh mih people, we should have been the ones dying, but Christ died in our place. Doesn’t that make you feel grateful and appreciative? It should, because the Good Book says that the wages of sin is death. (Rom.6:23a) That means, we, the abominable sinners, are the ones who should be dying, not Jesus. But in God’s great LOVE for us, He placed all our sins on Jesus and had Him pay our sin debt in full. Oh glory to God!

So my brethren, if we doubt anything at all, which we shouldn’t, please DON’T EVER DOUBT Jehovah God’s amazing LOVE for us, His most wonderful, but also most ungrateful creation!

And we’ll end with these powerful and true words of Jesus. ‘Greater LOVE hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends’ (John 15:13). Then He went out and laid down His holy and sinless life for His friends.

What more can I say eh? Not a whole lot. I can only ask, are you Jesus’ Friend? Much LOVE!

…and Jesus’ definition of friends…ye are my friends…if ye do whatsoever I command you… (John 15:14)

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