05 Feb 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a strong will, acknowledge God's sovereignty, adoration, adrift among the dead, as a man that hath no strength, as we forgive our debtors, ask and it shall be given you, ask and it shall be opened, babbling, be realistic, blessed with God's supernatural widom, christianity, cleanse our hearts before we go to God in prayer, clear direction for my life, come to know and love jesus like we do, communicate with our heavenly Father, conformity with the nature and purpose of God, counted with them that go down into the pit, counted with those who are dying, courage, creativity, cried out day and night before thee, curse, cut off from the land, deliver us from evil, divine protection, don't make empty meaningless prayers, don't make vain repetitious prayers, don't pray in a showmanship manner, don't try to impress men with your prayers, drive ourselves crazy, every one that asketh receiveth, faith, false prophets, favour, for thine is the kingdom, forgive those who wrong us, forgive us our debts, fulfillment, give us this day our daily bread, hallowed be thy name, he that seeketh findeth, holy spirit, if ye forgive men their trespasses, if ye forgive not men their trespasses, in Jesus' name, incline thine ear unto my cry, it shall be opened, Jesus Christ, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us, knock and it shall be opened unto you, lead us not into temptation, learnt to live with each day, let my prayer come before thee, like the slain that lie in the grave, listen to my cry, LOVE, man looks on the outward appearance, mercy, my life draweth nigh unto the grave, my soul is full of troubles, negative word, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses, on earth as it is in heaven, Our Father which art in heaven, prayer is an act of spiritual expression, promotion, prosper, reverence, salvation, seek and ye shall find, speaking without thinking, succeed, the BIBLE, the Lord looks on the heart, the Lord sees not as man sees, the penultimate day of our work week, the power and the glory for ever, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, to him that knocketh, truth, undeserved blessings, use those blessings to help others, we cannot fool God, whom you remember no more, wisdom, wishing for Friday and the weekend, your heavenly Father will also forgive you
Psalm 88:1-2. O Lord God of my salvation, I have cried (out) day and night before thee: Let my payer come before thee: incline thy ear unto my cry (listen to my cry);
Then it was Thursday, our penultimate day of the work week, and many of us just can’t wait for Thursday to be over and for Friday to show up. But we need to get real, be realistic; and learn to live with each day as it comes along, or else we’ll simply drive ourselves crazy wishing and hoping for Friday and the weekend. And the most important thing we can do each and every day is pray! Yes friends, prayer is super important, ever necessary, if we desire to communicate with our heavenly Father and Creator.
And I’m chuckling here, because I never expected to be still talking about prayer in a third message. I assumed it would be one message. But then I realized it needed at least two… And then I discovered that at least three were necessary, if I was to cover the subject thoroughly. So, we’re now on to message number three of the Bits on Prayer. (smile) And as we said earlier on in this series of messages, prayer can take any form, once it’s sincere, and not being made as a show for mankind. And the best examples of different kinds of prayer is found in the psalms, where the psalmists cry out to God for whatever reason.
It’s like Psalm 88, titled ‘A Trouble-Filled Soul’ from the Sons of Korah. ‘O Lord God of my salvation, I have cried (out) day and night before thee: Let my payer come before thee: incline thy ear unto my cry (listen to my cry); For my soul is full of troubles: and my life draweth nigh (near) unto the grave. I am counted with them that go down into the pit (are dying): I am as a man that hath no strength. Free (adrift) among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, whom thou rememberest no more: and they are cut off from the land.’ (Ps. 88:1-5)
And that is one thing about the psalmists, they were not afraid to cry out to God, but we in this sinful and hypocritical society think it unbecoming to do so. But let’s remember these encouraging words of Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount. ‘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.’ (Matt. 7:7-8)
And Jesus went as far as to give us an example of a simple but very effective prayer. He says: ‘After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.’ (Matt. 6:9-13)
There you have it friends; a basic example on which to build our prayers. First of all, there must be some acknowledgement of God’s sovereignty, before we ask for what we need. And most important is the need for us to forgive those who wrong us, for as Jesus later says: ‘For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your father forgive your trespasses.’ (Matt. 6:14-15)
Now that says it loud and clear my brethren! Many of us go to the Father with unforgiveness in our hearts but expect Him to forgive us and answer our requests. But according to Jesus it doesn’t work like that, which means we have to cleanse our hearts before we go to Him in prayer. And let’s remember we cannot fool God, for He looks at the heart not our outward actions, as He so plainly told Samuel when He sent him to anoint a new king for Israel from the house of Jesse.
Samuel saw the good looks and physical excellence of the first son, Eliab, and concluded that he was the one. ‘But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused (rejected) him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.’ (1 Sam. 16:7) And we all know which heart the Lord found most pleasing – that of Bruh David. So although prayer can take any form, there are a few basic do’s and don’ts. Like, do address God’s sovereignty in your prayers, with reverence and adoration, and approach Him with a clean and sincere heart. For if you are not forgiving, neither will He.
Meanwhile, do not let your prayer be mere showmanship, that is to impress others; neither make repetition a part of your prayers, for if the Lord is going to hear them, He will do so on the first uttering. That brings us back to the gospel of Matthew (6:7-8) where Jesus warned us against vain repetitions. The scholars tell us that denotes babbling or speaking without thinking, which the heathens do. And good examples of that can be found in the ecstatic babblings of the false prophets in the Old Testament and in the prophets of Baal who confronted Elijah on Mt. Carmel. (cf. 1 Kin. 18:26-29)
And we’ll end this series of messages on prayer with these very useful explanations from the scholars. They say that ‘Prayer is not man’s attempt to change the will of God. Prayer is not conquering God’s reluctance to answer, but laying hold of His willingness to help. Prayer in the life of the true believer is an act of total confidence and assurance in the plan and purpose of God. And furthermore, the sample prayer that Jesus gave us which we call ‘The Lord’s Prayer’ is in reality a disciple’s prayer. In no way does the prayer itself embody all of Jesus’ teachings about prayer; and having just warned against vain repetition, He did not intend for this particular prayer to be merely recited with empty meaninglessness.’
Unfortunately though, many of us do just that. However, after delving deeply into the subject of prayer, I do hope we have a better understanding of it, and that our future prayers will be indeed better prayers, (smile) in reality, better communication with Almighty God. Now let’s declare our Thursday Blessings, undeserved blessings that the Lord has generously bestowed on us to do His earthly work.
As one strong and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!
I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration, it now behooves us to go out and use those blessings to help others, just as generously as the Lord bestowed them on us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…Prayer is an act of spiritual expression…that brings us into conformity…to the very nature and purpose of God…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
29 Jan 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a father of the fatherless, a good family, a judge of the widows, a positive outlook on life., a strong will, abundance, all ye that are upright in heart, an object of scorn, as smoke is driven away, as wax melts before the fire, be glad in the Lord, Bible, by his name JAH, children of God, clear direction for my life, come to know and love christ like we do, curse, David danced before the Lord, divine protection, drive them away, duty bound, everything will turn out right in the end, extol him that rideth upon the heavens, faith, favour, find great joy in God, generously bestowed, give thanks, God brings out those bound in chains into propserity, God in his holy habitation, God is a defender of widows, God sets the lonely in families, God's supernatural wisdom, great adoration, he that trusteth in the Lord, heartfelt gladness, holy spirit, in every thing give thanks, Jesus Christ, let God arise, let his enemies be scattered, let the righteous be glad, let the wicked perish as the presence of God, let them exceedingly rejoice, let them rejoice before God, let them that hate him flee before him, LOVE, many sorrows shall be to the wicked, mercy, mercy shall compass him about, negative word, pray without ceasing, promotion, prya, put in a nutshell, rejoice, rejoice before God, rejoice evermore, rejoice ye righteous, self-disicpline, share our undeserved blessings, shout for joy, sing praises to his name, sing unto God, talent, the ark of the Lord, the destruction of God's enemies, the penultimate day of our work week, the presence of God, The Triumphant God, these cold and uninspiring day, this is the will of God in Christ concerning you, true believers in Christ, truth, undeserved favour, weep and moan regulalrly, wisdom
Psalm 68:3. But let the righteous be glad; let them rejoice before God: yea, let them exceedingly rejoice.
Then it was Thursday, the penultimate day of our work week. And there’s some joy showing through as the week slowly peters out. (smile) And it’s amusing that since the snowstorm on Sunday, everyday has been mostly bright sunshine and not the dreary cloudiness we had hitherto been saddled with. I don’t know if regular sunshine in the winter months is worth the price of such a massive snowfall, but we’re surely glad to see the sun to brighten our spirits, especially in these cold and uninspiring days. (smile)
But on a more serious note, today, I want us to look at a few verses from Psalm 68, titled, ‘The Triumphant God.’ The scholars say that although there is no superscription explaining when this psalm was written, there is general agreement that it was written when the ark of the Lord was moved from the house of Obed-edom to the new location in the tabernacle specially built for it in Jerusalem, and Bruh David danced before the Lord. (smile) (2 Sam. 6:1-18 )
However, what I want us to consider in the first few verses is the magnificent manner in which Bruh David desires the destruction of God’s enemies, talks of His might and power, praises His Holy name, while encouraging us to also sing His praises with joy and great adoration. So please read with me. ‘Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered: let them also that hate him flee before him. As smoke is driven away, so drive them away: as wax melteth before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God.
But let the righteous be glad; let them rejoice before God: yea, let them exceedingly rejoice. Sing unto God, sing praises to his name: extol (praise) him that rideth upon the heavens by his name JAH (Lord), and rejoice before him. A father of the fatherless, and a judge (defender) of the widows, is God in his holy habitation. God setteth the solitary (lonely) in families: he bringeth out those which are bound with chains (into prosperity): but the rebellious dwell in a dry land.’ (Ps. 68: 1-6)
There again, like yesterday, we see friends God’s great interest in the widows, orphans and the downtrodden. But today I want us to focus on the third and fourth verses, that encourage us as the righteous of God to be glad before him, to rejoice exceedingly, to sing praises to his name, to extol Him. And that word ‘extol’ does not simply mean to praise but to laud, to magnify, to exalt, to glorify, to acclaim and greatly celebrate! Yes friends we ought to find such great joy in our wonderful God that we just let it all hang out with praises and worship, fellowship and heartfelt gladness.
It’s like when Bruh David brought the ark home to Jerusalem he felt such a joy and blessing that the Good Book tells us, he danced before the Lord. But to his wife Michal, it was a vile and disgusting behaviour, not fit for a king. However, Bruh David was of a different opinion, and because of her snotty snobbishness, he banned her from his presence, and she was thus childless all of her days. (2 Sam. 6:20-23) That obviously made her an object of scorn and inuendo, for remember the great importance placed on wives bearing their husbands children in those days.
Anyway, getting back to the praise and worship due our magnificent and generous God, listen to these words of Bruh David from Psalm 32, titled ‘Confession and Forgiveness.’ He ends it with these very purposeful verses. ‘Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the Lord, mercy shall compass him about (surround him). Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.’ (Ps. 32:10-11) And I believe that’s something not enough of us do on a regular basis. But we do weep and moan very regularly. (smile)
Now, if our God is so good, why do we weep and moan more often than we rejoice and be glad eh? If we know and believe God’s promise that everything will turn out all right in the end (Rom. 8:28) then why are so many of us still so fearful? It means that we don’t truly believe. And what did Bruh Paul encourage the Thessalonians to do? ‘Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.’ (2 Thess. 5:16-18)
That puts it all in a very nice nutshell my people. (smile) Our basic duties are to pray, rejoice and give thanks! And even though it’s difficult to do in these crucial times, we desperately need to increase all three activities if we are to remain true believers in Christ Jesus and children of God. Now let’s do some giving of thanks by declaring our Thursday Blessings; underserved favour most generously bestowed on us by our marvellous God to do His earthly work.
As one strong and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!
I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration (yesss!!!) we’re now duty bound to go out and use those undeserved blessings to help others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…God made mankind to LOVE…pray to…sing His praises and worship Him…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
11 Dec 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, abundance, believe me for the very work's sake, believe me that I am in the Father, blessed with God's supernatural widom, born of the virgin Mary, come to know and love christ like we do, courage, creativity, curse, disobedience is the Christian's downfall, divine protection, divinity, do our own thing, faith, favour, follow Jesus example of obedience, from hencefort ye know him and have seen him, go our own way, God's character words and deeds are manifested in jesus, God's nature is revealed through Jesus, God's plan of salvation, he that hath seen me hath seen the Father, holy spirit, human sinfulness, I am the way the truth and the life, I came down from heaven, I speak not of mine own authority, it will satisfy us, Jesus Christ, Jesus is the perfect revelation of God, Jesus was obedient to the Father's will, Jesus' incarnate birth, Jesus' oneness with the Father, LOVE, mercy, more obedient to the dictates of Jesus, my judgement is just, my meat is to do the will of him who sent me, negative word, no man cometh unto the Father but by me, not to do my own will, promotion, prosper, salvation, shew us the Father, six feet under, succeed, talent, the Father doeth the works, the father in me, the Father that dwelleth in me, the penultimate day of our work week, the same divine essence, the thoughts of Christin our hearts, the wealth and power of the world, the will of him that sent me, the words that I speak unto you, thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, this is the way walk ye in it, thoughts of christ getting more intense, to understand Jesus is to understand God, truth, unity, when ye turn to the left, when ye turn to the right hand, wisdom
John 14:11. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.
And then it was Thursday, the penultimate day of our work week. Thankfully, the snow has stopped falling and the sun is shining but it’s cold. However, we’ll take the cold with the bright shining sun any day though, rather than the white stuff falling from the skies. (smile) And as we move closer to Christmas Day, the preparations are ramping up and getting even more intense. Let’s hope that the thoughts of Christ in our hearts, souls, bodies and minds are also getting more intense, as we look forward to that awesome day when we celebrate His incarnate birth.
How He was born of the virgin Mary, with the Holy Spirit planting the godly seed in Mary’s womb, so He could become human, but not have a human being as his biological father. It was the first step in God’s enormous and awesome plan of salvation for His human creation; Jesus being born sinless, so that He could eventually pay the hefty, soul draining price for our sinfulness.
But He also came to earth to show us what the Father, the God we’d worshipped for so long was really like, not in body, because the Father is a Spirit, but in ways and means, hopefully giving us a better understanding of what He expects from us. Remember Jesus talking to the disciples about His going away, and they claiming to not know where He was going and how. (John 14:3-4).
‘Then Thomas saith unto him, Lord we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh to the Father but by me. If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. Philip saith unto him, Lord shew us the Father, and it sufficeth (will satisfy) us.
Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long with you, and yet hast thou not known me Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father: and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself (of my own authority): but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.’ (John 14:5-11)
Yes friends, as Jesus told Philip, when we see Him, we also see the Father, for although they are separate, they are one in certain respects. And I like how this commentary puts it. ‘Jesus asserts his oneness with the Father, indicating they share the same divine essence, emphasizing their unity, divinity, and the Father’s presence in Jesus’ words and works, revealing God’s nature through Him. Jesus acts as the perfect revelation of God; to understand Jesus is to understand God, as God’s character, words, and deeds are fully manifested in Him.’
And that was exactly what Jesus did while living as a human being here on earth; teach us about the ways and character of God, through His works, deeds and words. Remember He said that His words and actions were not from His own authority, but from the Father’s. And throughout His earthly sojourn He made it crystal clear that He was obeying the will of His Father, not His own.
And we see that in verses like these. ‘My meat (food) is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.’ (John 4:34) Then in John 5, Jesus declares: ‘I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgement is just (righteous); because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.’ (John 5:30) And again in John 6, Jesus says; ‘For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.’ (John 6:38)
Ah friends, if there’s one thing Jesus modelled perfectly was obedience. He did nothing without consulting His Father, for it was His will Jesus came to earth to pursue. That’s why Isaiah reminds us: ‘And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.’ (Is. 30:21)
Oh, my fellow believers, the Holy Spirit is trying to lead and guide us in a godly and righteous manner, and how much better off we would all be if we could be even a tad more obedient to the dictates of Jesus, as His followers and ambassadors. For one of our greatest failings is we simply like to go our own way and do our own thing. But please, let’s look at the example Jesus set for us and do our best to follow it nuh. Killing ourselves to acquire the pleasures, wealth and power of the world won’t do us any good when we’re six feet under. But living seriously for Jesus now, will certainly help us in the next life.
And the Father has been so good to us, even to the extent of bestowing undeserved blessings on us to do His earthly work. So why not be wise and live for Him eh? And in keeping with that great idea, (smile) let’s now declare and activate those Thursday Blessings, that we can rise to our calling. As one strong and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline!
I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration (yesss!!!) we are now expected to go out and use those blessings to help others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…disobedience is the Christian’s downfall…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
25 Nov 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a soggy mess, a steady presence, apologize, bend down and pray, bits and pieces of pitch, come to know and love christ like we do, Debe, dinner engagement, done the experience justice, East Indian delicacy, extenuating circumstances, faith, falling asleep, he said unto me, holy spirit, houses built on stilts, hurry, I am the beloved of god, in god's eyes, Jesus Christ, La Brea, live this life, LOVE, memorable adventure, mercy, my grace is sufficent for thee, my strength is made perfect in weakness, pockmarked, put it to shame, real success, salvation, share His love with my neighbours, share the amazing love and friendship of Christ, shut eye, sincere faith, stood in the drizzle, the doubles capital, the Lord's awesome power, the penultimate day of our work week, the Pitch Lake, the truth of the matter, the wilds of the lake, to get to heaven, trust my friend Jesus, truth, Tuesday Manrta, two hellish days, wisdom, worry
2 Corinthians 9a. And he said unto me, my grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength (power) is made perfect in weakness.
Ah friends, the ole fella is here once again. Let’s see if we can get something done today, because it’s been …what …5 days without a Bit. That’s the longest break there’s ever been in all the years I’ve been writing it. And it’s not like I did not try to write any, because I did begin one on Thursday as well as Saturday, but unfortunately certain extenuating circumstances prevented me from finishing them.
Now let’s see if we can catch up all those days in one… no, it’s very doubtful with all the stuff that’s gone down. (smile) So we will just see how far we can get. Now this is how Thursday’s Bit began: And then it was Thursday, the penultimate day of the work week, which for many of you will be almost finished by the time you receive this, and you’d be looking forward to Friday.
But first things first; let me apologize for the real lateness of yesterday’s Bit. The truth of the matter is, I was falling asleep on myself by the time I finished writing it around seven o’clock T& T time, and thought I’d sent it then, so I dragged myself over to the bed for some much deserved shut eye.
But was I ever surprised to get up around ten p.m. and discover that it hadn’t been sent out. Obviously the ole fella was not thrilled with himself, but as they say, that’s life. Sad fact of the matter is I don’t know if this one is going to be any earlier, because as I am writing now around five thirty, I have a dinner engagement with some family for seven p.m. which means that I might have to stop and leave it till I come back later.
But friends, if I thought yesterday was somewhat rough…well…today put it to shame. (smile) As the ole people would say, what a bam bam! We started out around 8.40, heading for South, that’s southern Trinidad, with plans to stop at Debe, the doubles capital of Trinidad, to get some doubles that the young ladies craved. That’s an East Indian delicacy with curried Channa between two small round pieces of baked dough.
After doing that we headed to the famous Pitch Lake, where for a few hundred years pitch has been excavated from a portion of the land in the La Brea area. And would you believe that’s it a vast area, covering a lot of land on which the community is built, and since the lake is constantly moving some of the houses are built on stilts, while the road to the visible lake is filled with all sorts of humps and hollows where it’s reared its ugly head or sunk some.
Oh, I forgot to mention that coming down the highway the rain began falling, and for most of the day thereafter it kept up a steady presence. This means when we got to the Pitch Lake it was wet and muddy, but we still took the tour that we had booked. And was it ever an interesting exercise, both mentally and physically.
However, since it was raining and thus the ground a soggy mess we decided to leave the Duchess at the station, while the guide, my two daughters and I set out with umbrellas. And I can laugh now, but my bredrin it was tough slogging all the way for the ole fella.
And what made it worse we had a guide, Gavin, who knew exactly what was happening with the Pitch Lake and was thus able to answer all the scientific questions my young daughter the scientist posed to him. Then the trail was pockmarked with bits and pieces of pitch and water flowing all over, and the shoe I had on was not bult for such rugged terrain, but give it full marks, because, much to my surprise, it held up, although now it’s soaking wet. (smile)
Now, when we were halfway through the tour, my guide and children wanted to leave me behind at a li’l hut in the wilds of the lake, but I refused and went along with them out on the area that is actively mined for the pitch. And believe me, it was more tough slogging, but I kept on going, sometimes behind them, sometimes alongside them, all the time Gavin the guide, spouting stuff about the Lake.
Finally, half way to the middle of the lake, I decided to call it quits and let them go on without me. At one stage I even closed the umbrella and just stood in the drizzle because the wind was trying to blow the umbrella away. I even considered turning back by myself, but after looking around, and only seeing bushes in every direction, I could not figure out the way back to the hut. So I just stood up there and waited for them to come back.
And brother, the walk back was more difficult than going out, and a couple of times I had to bend down and pray, and remind the Lord that He says that in my weakness I would find strength in Him. As Bruh Paul wrote when he entreated the Lord three times to remove the thorn from his flesh. ‘And he said unto me, my grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength (power) is made perfect in weakness.’ (2 Cor. 12:9a)
And ever true and faithful to His Word, in my weakness, the Lord’s awesome power enabled me to make it back safely to the hut, and then to our original starting point. I don’t know if I’ve done the experience justice with my description of the place itself, but it was one of the many tough but memorable adventures in my life, and at this late stage of my life too.
But again, with the Lord’s help, we finally returned to Port of Spain, and if I remember rightly, there was little or no rain on the way back. So after getting back to the hotel and having a short nap, I began to write the Bit, but as I said earlier on, halfway through it, I had to leave to go to dinner with some family members, and by the time I returned about 11 p.m. I didn’t have the strength nor the inclination to continue writing it. So I simply went to bed.
And that friends is the truth of the matter. And it was just like I began Saturday’s Bit, saying, I had to go through two hellish days to get to heaven in Tobago. (smile) But more on that part of the story tomorrow. Now let’s go home declaring our Tuesday Mantra, letting all and sundry know to whom we belong, lock, stock and barrel.
As one strong and sincere voice: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with my immediate neighbours, as well as with the whole wide world! Glory be!’
And having made that declaration, it now behooves us to go out and share the amazing LOVE and friendship of Christ with others, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like do! Much LOVE!
…without strong and sincere faith…it is impossible to live this life…with any real success…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
26 Jun 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, a positive outlook on life, being confident of this very thing, being justified by his blood, being made more like Jesus in conduct and character, bounden duty, broken right now, by grace are you saved through faith, Christ's death atones for our sins, Christ's righteousness is imputed to them through faith, created in christ Jesus unto good works, curse, divine protection, eternal life, faith, favour, follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit, forgiveness of sins, God commendeth his love for us, God demonstrated his LOVE for us.', God hath before ordained, God made Him to be sin for us who knew no sin, god's declaration that a person is righteous, God's supernatural wisdom, good friends, good health, grow in spiritual maturity, he that believeth in me, he which hath begun a good work in you, holy spirit, I am the resurrection and the life, in the name of Jesus, it is the gift of God, Jesus Christ, Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, joy in God through Christ, justification, justified by his blood, keep God first place, lest any man should boast, LOVE, mercy, negative word, new life, not becuse of inherent righteousness, promotion, raised from glory to glory, receive clear direction for my life, received the atonement, reconciliation, reconnection to God, salvation, salvation is not of works, sanctified -set apart for God's work, saved from wrath through Christ, self-control, self-discipline, set apart for a sacred purpose, share our blessings generously, the numerous benefits of Christ's death and resurrection, the penultimate day of our work week, the recent heat wave, the righteousness of God in christ, the saving grace of God, though he were dead yet shall he live, truth, underserved divine favour, undeserved blessings, unless we have Christ we have nothing at all, we are his workmanship, we cannot earn salvation, we should walk in them, while we were yet sinners christ died for us, whosoever believeth in me shall never die, will perform it until the day of Jesus, wisdom
John 11:25. I am the resurrection, and the life he that believeth in me, though he were dead (may die), yet shall he live:
Ah friends, it’s Thursday, the penultimate day of our work week, and it looks like we’ve gotten through the recent heat wave without too much damage! Thank the Lord! And with a li’l rain falling in the early morning hours, and some falling outside right now, it’s helped to give us a cool, but somewhat cloudy day. And as we promised yesterday if God spared our lives, we would continue looking at some of the numerous benefits that His death and resurrection brought us.
Remember, yesterday we read this commentary that gave us a brief insight into some of those things: ‘‘Christ’s death and resurrection offer believers forgiveness of sins, new life, and the hope of eternal life, among other benefits. His sacrifice on the cross atones for our sins, while his resurrection conquers death, granting believers new life and the promise of eternal life.’ And we went through some of the relevant benefits and scriptures.
Today, as time and space permit, we’ll do a few more starting with one we touched on briefly yesterday. That’s reconciliation, or reconnection to God. That’s a major benefit, because our sins had separated us from our heavenly Father, and Christ’s dying and taking them, brought us back into communion with Him. And this passage of scripture touches on several of the things Christ’s sacrifice did for us. And one thing we should note is that it all happened because of God’s great LOVE for us.
Bruh Paul writes: ‘But God commendeth (demonstrated) his LOVE toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now (having been) justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his son, much more, being (having been) reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement (reconciliation).’ (Rom. 5:8-11)
Yes friends, in that passage we see God reaching out to us, although we were enemies, to provide reconciliation, salvation and justification through the death and the shed blood of His son. And what is salvation? Salvation is the saving grace of God, as Bruh Paul writes to the Ephesians. ‘For by grace are ye (you have been) saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship (creation), created in Christ Jesus unto (for) good works, which God hath before ordained (prepared) that we should walk in them.’ (Eph. 2:8-10)
And the gist of all that is simply that we are saved by the grace or undeserved divine favour of God, it is a gift of God, and we cannot earn it, no matter how hard we try. The fact is, we do good works because we’re expected to once we’re saved. We don’t do good works to be saved. And that’s something we all ought to understand, because many of us still believe doing good works will get us into heaven! Unfortunately it will not. Only faith, or belief in Christ Jesus will do so.
As Jesus said to Martha, the sister of Lazarus, before He raised him from the dead. ‘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) Now that’s a very crucial question! For belief and faith in Christ is the only way we will ever experience eternal life. His death paid the atoning price for our sins. ‘For he (God) hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Christ.’ (1 Cor. 5:21)
And ‘the righteousness of God’ is another benefit we received from Christ’s death and resurrection. Earlier on we talked about being ‘justified by his blood” that’s another benefit. So what’s justification, and what’s the righteousness of God? They are both intertwined, as this commentary explains: ‘Justification is God’s declaration that a person is righteous, not because they are inherently righteous, but because Christ’s righteousness is imputed to them through faith.’ Yes friends, all that we are, all that we have is because of Christ and applied to us because of Him. We have been made righteous, justified, reconciled and sanctified because of His work on the cross.
And sanctified simply means been set apart to do God’s work for a sacred purpose. It’s the process of being made more like Jesus Christ in character and conduct. And it’s a lifelong journey, not a one time event. It calls to mind this verse: ‘Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus.’ (Phil.1:6) Meaning that once God begins changing you into the image of Christ, He will not stop until Christ returns, or He takes you home.
Ah mih people I know it’s difficult to take in and understand all that Christ has done for us, but as the Lord changes us into His image, and we work with Him to do so, we will grow in spiritual maturity and understand more and more, as He raises us from glory to glory. So there’s no need to worry, once we keep God first place and follow the guidance of His Holy Spirit. And to show His goodness and mercy, God has bestowed on us what we call our Thursday Blessings. Undeserved blessings to do His earthly work. So, let’s declare and thus activate them right now!
As one strong and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!
I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration, it’s now our bounden duty to use those blessings to help others, just as generously as God shared them with us! Much LOVE!
…unless we have Christ…we have nothing at all…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
24 Apr 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a deep desire for personal righteousness, a hungry animal, a message of hope, a mighty rushing wind, a new heart will I also give you, a new spirit will I put within you, a renewed relationship with God, a sound from heaven, a spiritual transformation, a strong will, a thirsting soul, as generously as the Lord shared them with us, as the hart panteth after the water brooks, began to speak with other tongues, believers, blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, broken right now in the name of Jesus, broken the gates of brass, cause you to walk in my statutes, christianity, cloven tongues like fire, complete satisfaction, curse, cut the bars of iron asunder, divine protection, early will I seek thee, everything originates from God, faith, favour, filled with the Holy Ghost, for his goodness, fulfilment, give you an heart of flesh, good health, he filleth the hungry soul with goodness, he satisfieth the longing soul, his wonderful works to the children of men, holy spirit, I will bless thee while I live, in a dry and thirsty land where no water is, Jesus Christ, keep my judgements and do them, lift up my hands in thy name, LOVE, mercy, my flesh longs for you, my lips shall praise thee, my soul longeth for thee, my soul thirsteth for god, negative word, O God thou art my God, obedience to God's law, oh that men would praise the Lord, Old Testament prophecies fulfilled in the New Testament, other languages, outpouring of righteousness, panting for food or water, promostion, proof of their spiritual rebirth, propser, put my spirit within you, salvation, self-control, self-discipline, share our blessings with others, so panteth my soul after thee O God, spiritual poverty, spiritual rebirth, spiritual renewal, succeed, supernatural wisdom, take away the stony heart out of your flesh, the Beatitudes, the BIBLE, The Day of Pentecost, the Holy spirit indwelling believers, the indisputable truth, the living God, the penultimate day of our work week, the prophecy of Ezekiel, the sons of Korah, they shall be filled, thy loving-kindness is better than life, to see thy power and thy glory, truth, underserved blessings, When shall I come and appear before God, wisdom, yearning for perishable things, yearning for spiritual things
Psalm 107:15. Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness (LOVING-KINDNESS), and for his wonderful works to the children of men!
So we’ve come to Thursday, the penultimate day of our work week, a warm and sunshiny day, and we’re just panting for Friday, like a hungry or thirsty animal panting for food or water. Oh, how I wish we could be like the sons of Korah say in Psalm 42: ‘As the hart (deer) panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?’ (Ps. 42:1-2)
And Bruh David corroborates it in Psalm 63, ‘A Thirsting Soul’ while in the wilderness, running from his arch enemy King Saul. He writes: ‘O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul longeth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;’ (Ps. 63:1)
Yes friends, it’s the living God we should be panting and thirsting for; not the day when we get a break from work! For who do you think allows you to have that break eh? In the long run, it’s the living God! In fact everything that you have or get, initially flows from Almighty God! It might come through other people, but it all originates from the grace, mercy and LOVE of our heavenly Father! As Bruh David spells out in the next couple of verses. ‘To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee (looked for thee) in the sanctuary. Because thy LOVING-KINDNESS is better than life, my lips shall praise thee. Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.’ (Ps. 63:2-4)
Now that’s how we supposed believers ought to be behaving, not looking forward to the material, perishable things of the world, as so many of us are currently doing. It’s like Jesus says in the Beatitudes: ‘Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.’ (Matt. 5:6)
And the scholars offer this interesting explanation of that verse. ‘These future possessors of the earth are its presently installed rightful heirs, and even now they hunger and thirst for righteousness. They experience a deep desire for personal righteousness, which in itself is a proof of their spiritual rebirth. Those who are poor and empty in their own spiritual poverty recognize the depth of their need, and they hunger and thirst for that which ONLY God can give them. They shall be filled refers to a complete satisfaction. The psalmist proclaimed: “He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.” (Ps. 107:9)
And that’s the indisputable truth my fellow believers! When we sincerely hunger and thirst for the righteousness of God, He fills us up, because that is His very nature, which He cannot deny. And we find one of the best examples of that in the Book of Acts, on the Day of Pentecost when the church members were sitting together in a room, ‘And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven (divided) tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues (in other languages), as the Spirit gave then utterance.’ (Acts. 2:2-4)
Oh my brethren, that was certainly an unusual outpouring of righteousness all at once, but it marked the beginning of the Holy Spirt indwelling believers and not operating outside on certain occasions. It’s what God promised the Israelites in the prophesy of Ezekiel. ‘A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgements, and do them.’ (Ezek. 36:26-27)
And this commentary offers an explanation of those verses. ‘They promise a spiritual transformation, where God will replace the Israelites’ “heart of stone” (stubbornness, resistance) with a “heart of flesh” (responsiveness, obedience), and infuse them with a “new spirit,” symbolizing a renewed relationship with God and obedience to His laws. This promise is a type of the New Covenant, fulfilled in Jesus Christ, offering spiritual renewal to all believers.
In essence, Ezekiel 36:26 is a powerful message of hope and spiritual renewal, promising a restoration of the Israelites’ relationship with God through a transformation of their hearts and minds. This transformation is also seen as a foreshadowing of the New Covenant, where God’s spirit dwells within believers, enabling them to live in obedience and righteousness.’
Now that ought to help us believe God’s Word even more, as those prophecies in the Old Testament keep being fulfilled in the New Testament. Consequently, our behaviour ought to be like the psalmist says in Psalm 107: ‘Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness (LOVING-KINDNESS), and for his wonderful works to the children of men! For he hath broken the gates of brass (bronze), and cut the bars of iron in sunder.’ (Ps. 107:15-16)
Yes, friends, the Lord has broken all our chains and released us from the prison of sin and being hell bound through the auspices of Christ’s work on the cross of Calvary. That means we should be thankful, grateful and show it through our obedience and LOVE, especially since He’s further showered us with our Thursday Blessings, undeserved blessings to do His earthly work. So let’s declare and activate them right now nuh.
As one strong and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!
I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration (yeah!!!) we are now duty bound to go out and share those blessings with others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…instead of yearning for perishable earthly things…we ought to ye yearning for imperishable spiritual or heavenly things…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
09 Jan 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, a journey of becoming like Jesus, a legal benefit of our union with Christ, a mercy seat, a part of the discipleship process, a product of God's grace, a spiritual benefit of our union with Christ, a weekend release, all have sinned, attain God's standard of righteousness, being justfied freely by his grace, Bible, can never be reckoned, Christ has imputed His righeousness to the sinner, Christ has satisfied God's holy law, Christ's death is the ransom, christianity, curse, declared righteous, divine provision, duty bound, faith, fallen short of the glory of God, favour, fly away to heaven, forgiveness of sins, from the tiring throes, get a good handle on, God hath set forth, God's unmerited favour, good health, grace, growing in divine grace, handle the ups and downs, have life more abundantly, having Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, holy spirit, human need, I am come that they might have life, I am the good shepherd, Jesus Christ, Jesus' shed blood, judicial standing before God, justification, justified, life in the big city, LOVE, mercy, negative word, no just cause in man to warrant justification, of the daily grind and common task, passing over of sins, redemption, release on payment of ransom, righteous, salvation, sanctification, sanctified, self-discipline, set apart, set apart for God's purposes, supernatural strength, the good shepherd gives his life for his sheep, the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus, the monumental work of Jesus, the penultimate day of our work week, the process of becoming holy, the remission of sins, the same ole everyday life, the sinner is not rendered guiltless but pardoned, the spilled blood of Jesus, the thief coes only to steal and kill, through Christian commitment, through faith in his blood, through the forbearance of God, through the redemption in Christ Jesus, to be a propitiation, to declare his righteousness, to spend eternity with Christ, transformation into the image of Christ, truth, washed, wisdom, with a good attitude
John 10:10b. I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
And then it was Thursday, the penultimate day of our workweek, and we’re just mindlessly moving along, somewhat impatiently waiting for Friday to show up with its promise of a weekend release from the frustrating and tiring throes of the daily grind and common task. (smile) But that’s life in the big city my people, and the only way to get a good handle on the bland, same ole everyday life is by having Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, and thereby getting all the tools to handle whatever ups and downs might come your way, with a good attitude.
That’s called the abundant life! Jesus died that we might have it. Listen as He says so: ‘The thief cometh not but (except) to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.’ (John 10:10) What more can we ask for eh friends? Nothing really, for Christ gave His life on the cross at Calvary so that we could have a decent earthly life and then fly away to heaven to spend eternity with Him!
As He said: ‘I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.’ (John 10:11) And that’s exactly what He did! So why is it so difficult to trust Him eh, to surrender our all to a Deity who died that we could live a righteous, justified, sanctified, holy and blessed life? And Bruh Paul in his first letter to the Corinthians, explained that no evil doers shall inherit the kingdom of God: ‘And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified (set apart), but ye are justified (declared righteous) in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.’ (1 Cor. 6:11)
And what do those terms really mean eh? This commentary takes us a little deeper, as it explains. ‘Justification is a legal benefit of our union with Christ, granting us forgiveness of sin and righteousness before God through faith alone (Rom. 3:23-26; Gal. 2:16). Sanctification is a Spiritual benefit of our union with Christ, involving the believer’s transformation into the holy likeness of Christ.’ So, you see all that we are, comes through Christ!
And I just found this interesting information on Sanctification. It says: ‘Sanctification is a Christian term that refers to the process of becoming holy or being set apart for a special purpose. It can also refer to the state of being sanctified. Sanctification is a lifelong process that involves: Being set apart from the world for God’s purposes, Growing in divine grace through Christian commitment, Being transformed into the likeness of Christ, Submitting one’s heart, mind, and body to following Jesus. Sanctification is part of the discipleship process, which is a journey of becoming like Jesus. It’s a product of God’s grace, and it’s anticipated that Christ will complete the process of sanctification when he returns.’
Hope that helps us to understand more about sanctification and appreciate the big step it is in our Christian life. And yes, it does seem to be somewhat onerous, but let’s remember that with Christ as our Main Man, all things are possible. Now, let’s have a look at those verses in Romans that the above commentary referenced. I believe they can help further our understanding of the process of how and who we become by the spilled blood of Jesus.
Bruh Paul writes: ‘For all have sinned, and come (fallen) short of the glory of God; Being justified freely (without any cost) by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation (a mercy seat) through faith in his blood, to declare (demonstrate) his righteousness for the remission (passing over) of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.’ (Rom. 3:23-26)
Now that’s certainly a mouthful, and is somewhat confusing, so let’s hear how the scholars explain it. ‘3:23: For all have sinned: The human need and the divine provision are alike applied universally. Come short of the glory of God: Man can exceed his own standards but never, left to himself, can he attain to God’s standard of righteousness. 3:24: Being justified indicates being declared righteous. It signifies the believer’s judicial standing before God. Freely: There is no just cause in man to warrant justification. By his grace: Unmerited favour is bestowed through the redemption (release on payment of ransom). Christ’s death is the ransom. The sinner is released on the basis of the ransom’s having been paid.
3:25-26: Through faith: Christ’s death satisfies the Father’s righteous demands. Its benefits are appropriated only through faith in His finished work. In his blood: The emphasis is not on the blood as it coursed through Christ’s veins, but as it was shed for our sins. This is how the propitiation (atonement, forgiveness of sins) was accomplished. Just, and the justifier: God can remain just (true to His nature) and still declare sinners to be righteous only because Christ has paid for sin and satisfied (propitiated) His holy law. The sinner is not rendered guiltless but pardoned. Christ has taken the sin on Himself and has imputed (assigned, credited) His righteousness to the sinner.’
Wow! That’s a whole lot to understand, but it’s ever so important if we are to know all our rights, privileges and responsibilities in God, through Christ! Please, let’s spend some time considering all that we’ve said today nuh, so that we can grow in spiritual understanding and intimacy with God. Now let’s go home declaring (yesss!) and thus activating our Thursday Blessings, which the Lord has generously bestowed on us to do His earthly work.
As one voice! ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’
And having activated those blessings, we’re now duty bound to go out and share them with others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us! Much LOVE!
…oh…the monumental work that Jesus’ shed blood has done for us…it’s value can never be reckoned…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
31 Oct 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, a familiar spirit, a good fight of faith, a positive outlook on life, a wizard, abominations, an ancient Celtic festival, an ungodly celebration, be blameless before the Lord, be perfect with the Lord, Bible, children offered as sacrifices to idols, Chrisitans, christianity, Christians not willing to sacrifice, creativity. courage, curse, dangerous, demons, detestable things, disater filled world, divination, divine protection, enchanter, evildoers, faith, favour, fear of God, fear of man, god, Halloween, it makes money, Jesus Christ, lose a generation to Satan, LOVE, negative word, pagan rituals, pass through the fire, prosper, put to death, salvation, Samhain, shirking our repsonsibility, sorcerer, spread lies, succeed, suffer not a witch to live, take the bull by the horns, the betterment of our world, the darker side of life, the penultimate day of our work week, the salt of the earth, the souls of the dead, their blood on their own heads, to thwart the kingdom of God, truth, ungodly, wisdom, witch
Deuteronomy 18:13. Thou shalt be perfect (blameless) with the Lord thy God.
And then it was Thursday, the penultimate day of our workweek. But today is also October 31, the day when we celebrate the old pagan festival of Halloween, another opportunity for the greedy money men to raise the level of their coffers at the expense of foolish parents buying ugly, frightening costumes for their children, who then go about the streets in the dark knocking on houses for candy and whatever stuff the houseowners have on offer.
It’s not only an ungodly celebration, where things like witches and other dark, negative bodies are embraced, but it’s also dangerous, for the wicked and evil people in today’s world have begun putting all sorts of dangerous stuff in the things they give away. But, while it makes money for the business men and dentists, I guess it will continue to be celebrated.
And just for your information, ‘Halloween’s origins can be traced back to the ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain, which was held on November 1 in contemporary calendars. It was believed that on that day, the souls of the dead returned to their homes, so people dressed in costumes and lit bonfires to ward off spirits.’ It just goes to show how little we truly LOVE and appreciate our great God, when we still adhere to such pagan rituals, where the things of the dark side are lifted up.
And there are several instances in the Bible of not accommodating negative things and rituals in our lives. For example this directive in Exodus: ‘Thou shalt not suffer (permit) a witch to live.’ (Deut. 22:18) That meant that people who embraced the darker side of life, like sorcerers and sorceresses, who dealt in drugs and potions and spirits should not be allowed to live, for they were not pursuing godly behaviour and would most likely encourage others to do so.
Meanwhile the Book of Leviticus tells us: ‘A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit (ghost, demon) or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood shall be upon them.’(Lev. 20:27) That means their blood shall be upon their own heads. And what are familiar spirits? Spirits or servants ready to obey the commands of their evil masters.
This commentary from the gotquestions.org website puts it thus. ‘Familiar spirits and spirit guides are under the control of their master, Satan. They influence people to spread lies and deceit in order to thwart the kingdom of God. To knowingly open oneself to the work of demons is an evil thing.’
And to support that, we have this warning to Israel to avoid pagan practices. ‘When thou art come into the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations (detestable things) of those nations. There shall not be found among you anyone that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire (be burned as an offering to an idol), or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch,
Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination (a detestable thing) unto the Lord: and because of these abominations the Lord thy God doth drive them out from before thee. Thou shalt be perfect (blameless) with the Lord thy God.’ (Deut. 18:9-13)
It couldn’t be put any clearer than that my people. But do you think Israel listened? Not on your life! Several times they turned to worshipping the pagan gods of other nations and paid a hefty price each time for their disobedience. Likewise, our society today is embracing many pagan customs, rites and those who take the lead in such abominations. Is it any wonder then that our world is a state of chaos and upheaval like never before.
Both man-made and natural disasters are proliferating in a world that’s the most prosperous and enlightened it’s ever been. Why is that eh? The efforts of the evildoers are stronger than those of the godly. It’s as simple as that. We have more than enough supposedly godly people to turn this disaster filled world around if we would only get up and do something about it.
But because of things like fear of man more than fear of God, laziness, and a desire for the comfortable life, Christians are not prepared to sacrifice much for the betterment of our world, or rather, as much as it would take to turn our world around. Then we cringe, whine, hold our heads an bawl when we see the ungodly and evil happenings in our world.
Hn! If we were the shining lights of the world and the salt of the earth, as we’re supposed to be, many of those evil things would not be happening. But because we’re shirking our Christian responsibility, the evildoers are ruling the roost, even running away with the first prize. Oh my fellow believers, if we allow the world to continue as it’s going on its evil bent, what kind of world will our grandchildren and their children inherit eh? A totally evil and ungodly world!
Is that what you want for them? I certainly hope not. But then it means that we need to get up right now, take the bull by the horns and make as many godly changes as we can. We cannot afford to lose that generation to Satan, as we’ve lost the current one. And it’s not like we don’t have the tools to do it, for the Lord has generously bestowed on us what we call our Thursday Blessings; blessings that enable us to do His earthly work. So let’s declare them right now, and thus activate them in our lives.
As one strong and sincere voice! ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!
I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration (yesss!!!) we are now duty bound to go out and use those blessings on behalf of others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us! Much LOVE!
…the evil forces will completely overtake our world…unless Christians put up a good fight of faith for Christ…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
19 Sep 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a declaration of hope, an accurate perception, be filled with, be filled with the knowledge of his will, be glad and rejoice, Bible, blessings, christianity, collect your beauty in my spirit, courage, creativity, curse, delivered us from the power of darkness, do not cease to pray for you, duty bound, eternal life, evil schemes of Satan, experience the sunshine, faith, favour, fruitful in every good work, giving thanks unto the Father, god, holy spirit, increasing in the knowledge of God, Jesus Christ, joint heir with Christ, joyfulness, longsuffering, LOVE, may my lightness be, negaive word, new mercies and compassions, partakers of the inheritance of the saints, pateince, practical circumstances, redemption, salvation, sit in heavenly places, smell the roses, spiritual understanding, strengthened with all might, success, supernatural strength, talent, teach me, Thank You Lord, the blood of Jesus, the forgiveness of sins, the penultimate day of our work week, the skilful application of wisdom, the true nature of things, the warmth of sunshine on my back, to appreciate the many colours, to celebrate your abundance, to look for beauty on heavy days, to revel in, trials, tribulations, truth, unto all pleasing, walk worhty of the Lord, wisdom
Colossians 1:10. That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;
And then it was Thursday, the penultimate day of our work week. And thank the Lord we’re only one day away from our starlight day of Friday! (smile) Oh, the expectations we weigh Friday down with; hopefully it lives up to it’s name and doesn’t disappoint us. But, regardless of whatever day it is, once we’re alive to experience the sunshine and smell the roses, let’s be glad and rejoice in it, because that’s God’s desire. It’s why He’s given us a brand new day with new mercies and compassions. And all God’s children said a loud and grateful, ‘Thank You Lord for allowing me to see another day on this troubled, but still beautiful earth! Amen.’
Now, here’s this month’s prayer from the InTouch Devotional that helps us to do just that. Please pray with me: ‘God, teach me to look for beauty on heavy days, to celebrate Your abundance and brilliance. I want to revel in the warmth of sunshine on my back, to appreciate the many colours You’ve created. I want to pause when the wind moves the trees just so, to admire the quirk in a friend’s personality. Though disappointments, losses, and struggles continue, I pray to laugh easily, to be frivolous with joy. May I collect Your beauty in my spirit and draw from it. May my lightness be a declaration of hope in Your goodness, today and always. In Jesus’ name, amen.’
Yes friends, that’s the way we need to live this life; in full hope and trust in Almighty God, enjoying His goodness and mercy and all the wonderful things He’s made, even in the midst of all the troubles and tribulations we might face. And I believe these encouraging words from Bruh Paul to the Colossians give us some insight how to practically do all of what we’ve spoken of above.
Bruh Paul writes: ‘For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;
Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness; giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet (qualified us) to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in (the) light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated (transferred) us into the kingdom of his dear Son (the Son of His LOVE): In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:’ (Col. 1:9-14)
Oh my people, that’s generally what’s expected of us: To know the Lord’s will for our lives, through studying and meditating on His Word and communing with Him through the Holy Spirit, with all wisdom or ‘accurate perception into the true nature of things,’ as well as understanding, ‘the skillful application of this wisdom in practical circumstances.’ And all of that is necessary so that we can walk (live) properly and please God.
And what does that mean in a practical sense? The scholars explain. ‘A worthy walk entails: the believer is (1) fruitful in every good work, productive in Christian service; (2) constantly increasing in the knowledge of God, ever coming to know the Lord better; (3) always “strengthened with all might,” becoming spiritually stronger and stronger; and (4) in the habit of giving thanks, sincerely expressing gratitude to God in both the pleasant and unpleasant circumstances of life.’
Now I know it all sounds wonderful in theory, but it’s not always easy to do in real life, for patience, which is persevering through trials and tribulations is only gained through experiencing those same trials and tribulations. (smile) And so is longsuffering, or bearing the faults and offences of others with a compassionate heart and mind. In other words we can only learn patience and longsuffering by going through trials and tribulations. The more trials and tribulations we go through, the better, hopefully, we’ll get at cracking those two tough nuts.
But at the same time, we need to remember all that the Father has done for us through His Son, Jesus Christ; bringing us out of darkness or bondage to sin, into the light of the truth of His Word, making us worthy to sit in heavenly places with Jesus, as joint heir with Him, redeeming us through the shedding of Christ’s blood on the cross of Calvary, offering salvation, forgiveness of sins, all with the marvelous end of eternal life. Now with all of that done by the Father on our behalf through the Son, how can we not LOVE both Father and Son and listen to the Holy Spirit which enlightens us to their desires?
Oh my fellow believers, living and working for Jesus is the most important and beneficial thing this world has to offer. So please, let’s wake up and realize it, and forget all the foolish lies, deceptions and evil schemes that Satan tries to distract us with nuh. For only by being close to Jesus can we ever obtain salvation and eternal life. Now let’s declare (chuh!!!) our undeserved Thursday Blessings, so generously bestowed on us to do the Lord’s earthly work.
Altogether: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!
I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration (steups!!!) we are now duty bound to go out and use those blessings for the benefit of others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us! Much LOVE!
…true wisdom and understanding are only available…through sincerely living and working for Jesus…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
27 Apr 2023
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: author and finisher of our faith, curse, discunity in the church, faith, favour, given him a name above every other name, God hath highly exalted him, good freinds, great family, insufficient financial rewards, jobs that we dislike, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, LOVE, negative word, our shining example, self-aggrandization, share them generously, stress, stress the number one killer, the accumulation of profits, the everlasting Father, the indisputable truth, the mighty God, the penultimate day of our work week, the Prince of Peace, the welfare and benefit of workers, Thursday Blessings, Wonderful Counsellor
Philippians 2:9. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
And now it’s Thursday, the penultimate day of our workweek, and we’re looking forward ever so much to tomorrow, that’s Friday, because for two days, we cease the tiring and unpleasant act of travelling back and forth to a job that many of us despise and dislike, and only perform it, or rather endure it because of the insufficient financial rewards we receive and so badly need if we’re to survive in this rat race we call our civilization! And if that isn’t a Bruh Paulian sentence, then I don’t know what is. (smile)
Ah friends, that statement might seem somewhat degrading and unfair, but it’s the indisputable truth. Many more people dislike their jobs than like them, and many would not go to them if they could find another way to make a living. And can you imagine the drudgery and resentment that so many of us put up with for two or three decades in a job that we dislike and thus don’t do to the best of our ability. I guess that’s because of the way the formulators of commerce and industry have set up our economic system without much thought to the welfare and benefit of the workers, but more so to the accumulation of profit for themselves.
But as I recently said, our current system is so backward and not truly engineered for making the best use of our talents and efforts, as well as being psychologically and emotionally very draining. You’d think that a society that’s been to the moon and various planets around our solar system, could come up with a better system of labour than one that has hordes of people languishing in vehicles morning and evening, not going anywhere fast. It’s no wonder they end up drained and stressed out, and that the new age disease of stress is the number one killer in our society.
Our forefathers didn’t even know the meaning of the word, but today it’s on everyone’s tongue, because we’re always so busy, but in reality going nowhere. We don’t have time to call or visit each other these days, because we’re so busy. But ask us what we’re busy doing, most of us can’t tell. Nevertheless, it’s the number one excuse nowadays for lack of family participation, camaraderie and true friendship. Imagine the sad situation where we have the best means of communication ever, almost instant messaging, but yet we’re possibly the most alone and loneliest generation the world has ever seen.
And the great amount of oppression, suppression, violence, lawlessness, greed, deceit and fraudulent activities that now permeate our world don’t lend themselves to trust and friendship. The recent pandemic and the current upheaval in our political systems, where everyone is fighting for power by any means necessary, doesn’t help the situation either. So, what’s the answer to it all eh? And there can only be one answer; that’s to make Jesus our true Lord and Saviour, our King and Ruler!
Why, you further ask? Because He’s the ONLY ONE who can handle the crazy, negative situation that exists in our world. Check it out nuh: He’s the Prince of Peace, the Wonderful Counsellor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father! (Is. 9:6) Now who else has all those marvellous attributes and talents eh? Nobody! That’s what makes Him fit to rule the world! And when you add some of His other names like the Lion of Judah, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the Rose of Sharon, the Calmer of Storms, the Best Guide and Pilot ever, on land, sea or air, etc. etc. there’s absolutely no one else more qualified to run our lives and our universe.
Then, when you get down to brass tacks and recognize the truth of the Bible, God’s inspired Word, where it says that because Christ was ‘found in fashion (appearance ) as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those things in heaven, and those things in earth, and those things under the earth; and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the Gory of God the Father.’ (Phil. 2:8-11)
Now friends, with all of that going for Jesus, who else is better qualified to run our world and our lives eh? Again I say: NOBODY! But yuh think people are running to Him in droves despite the adversity and tribulation we’re experiencing. No! A lot of us are in fact running away from Him! Why is that eh? One big reason is because the body He formed, called His church, is not doing enough to bring people to Him, but is sadly doing a lot to drive them away, with all the infighting, disunity and scandal that’s currently plaguing it.
And we, as induvial believers aren’t doing such a hot job either, because we’re not living the way Jesus commanded us to live, like brothers and sisters, LOVING each other, treating each other with kindness and compassion. That’s one of the reasons there’s so much sickness, poverty and economic stagnation and depression in our world. The church and its members are not doing as much as it ought to stem the woes and the travesty of our society. Remember Jesus said that He came to save those who were lost, the sick and the suffering, the underprivileged and the prisoners, the widows and orphans.
And if He is to be our shining example, our bright LIGHT, the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God: (Heb. 12:2) then it’s obvious that we must make those things that He came and died for our priorities as well. And He’s such a wonderful Saviour that, knowing of our frailty, fragility, and finite shortcomings, He’s generously bestowed on us, all His followers, what we call our Thursday Blessings, to help us do His earthly work. Remember, He never asks us to do something without giving us the power and the tools to do it.
So, this bright and sunshiny Thursday morning in late April, let’s declare (ah Lord eh!!!) our Thursday Blessings, so that we can activate them in our lives. As one strong voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline!
I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’
Now, let’s take those blessings and go out and share them, use them just as generously in the care and compassion of others, as Jesus used them with us! Much LOVE!
…there’s no getting away from it…ONLY JESUS…is truly qualified to rule the world…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
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