The Importance of Christians Knowing Scriptures Associated with the Specifics of God’s Promises! Part 1.

22 Jan 2026 Leave a comment

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

Matthew 6:11.        Give us this day our daily bread.

Oh brother! Am I ever tired of this snow already. We had snow yesterday, then this morning we had some more. Granted not a lot today, but any amount of snow whatsoever is hazardous and dangerous to human life. (smile) I remember going to bed at minutes after four this morning and my driveway was clean, as my maintenance man had cleaned it during the night. Now, imagine my angry surprise when I got up this morning around eight, and although the sun was shining brightly, saw more snow in my driveway. 

The foolish snow has been keeping me from going out and doing some things I want to do. And to make matters worse, the Duchess tells me that they are forecasting snow for today and also tomorrow. Mama Mia! It’s enough to drive a body crazy! (smile) But rest assured I won’t allow it to do that, for once there’s no urgent reason for me to go out, the snow could fall day and night as far as I’m concerned. And I hope you realize that’s a lie! (smile) But enough of my ranting about the snow. As the Lord tells me, if I didn’t want to encounter that beautiful, fluffy white stuff, I should not have come to the northern climes. And as usual, He’s right. 

And today, I want to again address that poem we looked at yesterday; ‘The Promises and Non-Promises of God,’ in particular the last verse that concerns God’s promises. It says: ‘But God hath promised strength for the day, rest amid labour, light for the way; grace for trials, help from above, unfailing sympathy, undying LOVE.’ Now, let’s see what scriptures we can find that articulate those promises. And there are many scriptures that promote the first one ‘strength for the day,’ but I want to begin with this particular verse from the Lord’s Prayer, where Jesus gave the disciples, and consequently us, an example of accepted prayer. 

And the verse I want to centre on is ‘Give us this day our daily bread.’ (Matt. 6:11) Yes friends, as both the poem and Jesus say, all we really need is bread and strength for each day. It’s like when the Lord fed the Israelites with manna in the wilderness, He instructed them to pick up only enough for ONE day, unless it was for the Sabbath, then they could pick up for two. And anything left over one day spoiled immediately. (Ex. 16) It was a way of teaching them to rely on God’s provision for their daily need. It’s also something we have to learn today; take one day at a time, and God will provide all that’s necessary. As Jesus says: ‘Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:33) 

Then there are other verses which magnify the Lord’s strength like this one we all know and like to quote: ‘But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.’ (Is. 40:31) And what about these reassuring words from the Sons of Korah from Psalm 46: ‘God is our refuge and strength, a very present help (an abundantly available help) in trouble.’ (Ps. 46:1) Then Bruh Paul gives us this magnificent assurance in his letter to the Philippians. ‘I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.’ (Phil. 4:13) And this one from Nehemiah is one we must always bear in mind: ‘…for the joy of the Lord is your strength.’ (Neh. 8:10) 

And I’m chuckling here friends, because I’m now realizing that this is a two day task and not a one day like I had imagined, for there are so many scriptures that we can quote, and leaving out any, seems like a travesty of justice. (smile) So here are a couple more on God’s strength for the day. ‘Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.’ (Eph. 6:10) Then Bruh Paul exhorts the Corinthians: ‘Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you (be brave) like men, be strong.’ (1 Cor. 16:13) Then finally, this reassurance of Bruh Paul to Timothy, one we all know but don’t action fully. ‘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) And there are many more you can check out for yourself. (smile) 

Now turning to the promise of ‘rest amid labour,’ I believe there’s only one scripture needed to cover it all, that’s the Great Invitation, where Jesus invites all and sundry to: ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (from) me; for I am meek and lowly in heart (gentle and humble): and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt. 11:28-30) Oh my people, anyone who doesn’t take advantage of that glorious invitation from Jesus is a fool! And that’s putting it mildly. For who else offers such and invitation, or who else can ever deign to do so, for nobody else has the wherewithal to do it but Jesus! 

So let’s remember that today and place our trust in the One and Only, Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour; the One who didn’t just talk the talk, but more importantly walked it, and  LOVED us enough to die on the cross of Calvary and bear our sins on His sinless shoulders. Now let’s go home declaring and thus activating our undeserved Thursday Blessings that the Lord has so generously bestowed on us to do His 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 (awright!!!) it now behooves us 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!

…sometimes we Christians think too much about tomorrow…and not enough about today…

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

The Overwhelming Importance of Christians Not Abusing and /or Misusing God’s Promises!

21 Jan 2026 Leave a comment

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

1 John 2:17.         And the world paseth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

And then it was Wednesday, our second wind day. And do we ever need to catch that second wind so we can make it safely through, because it’s a cloudy, snowy, miserable day. Chuh! This looks like it’s going to be a snowy winter, for every time you turn around it’s snowing. But there’s nothing much to do but grin and bear it, for that’s the nature of the northern climes, and we’ve been spoiled in recent years with comparatively little snow during the winter months. But here’s an interesting poem I recently discovered amongst my piles of papers. I’m not sure where it comes from or when (smile) but I’m fairly sure I’ve shared it sometime in the past. 

But like so many of those prayers and poems, they are still very appropriate for these turbulent times. And I believe the poem is called ‘The Promises and Non-Promises of God.’ So please read with me. ‘God hath not promised skies ever blue, flower-strewn pathways all our lives through; God hath not promised sun without rain, joy without sorrow, peace without pain. God hath not promised smooth roads and wide, swift, easy travel needing no guide; God hath not promised we shall not bear many a burden and many a care. But God hath promised strength for the day, rest amid labour, light for the way; grace for trials, help from above, unfailing sympathy, undying LOVE!’ 

And that’s the living truth my people! God never promised that we will just waltz through this life with no cares, worries, burdens or trials. He simply promised that He will help us each and every day to bear what burdens or trials we might experience. It’s just that we know His omnipotent power and are lazy and selfish and expect to get through life Scot free, that we take these liberties about what God promised and what He didn’t. Why do you think He gave us first Jesus, then the Holy Spirit eh? 

Jeus came to save us from our abominable sinful behaviour that was leading us down the path of eternal separation from God. As He very plainly says in the gospel of John: ‘For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world though him might be saved.’ (John 3:17) Yes friends, we needed divine help if we were to avoid hellfire and damnation. And having given us an option to avoid that most fearful outcome, the Lord then gave us the Holy Spirit to help us live the kind of life we needed to live so we could stay on the straight and narrow path that leads to Him and eternal life. 

The Holy Spirit is our guide and comforter and helper. If God didn’t think we’d need those things to live this earthly life, why give us the Holy Spirit? Listen to Jesus again, this time on the work of the Holy Spirit. ‘If ye LOVE me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter (Helper), that he may abide with you forever. Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless (as orphans): I will come to you.’ (John 14:15-18) 

And so it was done! The Holy Spirit came to dwell within each believer on the first day of Pentecost after Jesus’ ascension back to heaven. (Acts 2:1-4) Then later on, Jesus again spoke to the disciples about the importance of the Holy Spirit. ‘Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself (on his own authority); but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall ye speak: and he will shew you things to come.’ (John 16:13) And Jesus finally told them: ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33). 

Oh my people, the Lord knew that we would have tough times in this sinful world, that’s why he equipped us with all that we needed to handle it. The Holy Spirit, prayer, grace, mercy, and His Word. For living in an evil and ungodly world trying to be righteous and godly is a major task. That’s why we have scriptures like James’ exhortation: ‘My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations (various trials); Knowing this, that the trying (testing) of your faith worketh (produces) patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire (complete), wanting (lacking) nothing.’ (James 1:2-4) 

Yes those are tough words to handle, but as the scholars explain: These “negative” experiences are to be accepted with great joy, not for the sake of the trial itself but because of the positive work God can accomplish through the testing.’ We do need to remember that God tests our faith all through this earthly life and that is done usually through trials and temptations because it’s only when we are between a rock and a hard place that our faith grows. When life’s good, our faith either stagnates or gets soft and weak.(smile) 

And remember too that the Lord’s Number One Plan is to have all His children as replicas of His first born Jesus, therefore, as along as we are alive, we will be like putty or clay in the hands of a potter, with Him trying to make us into the image of Jesus. It’s like Bruh Paul says to the Philippians: ‘Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform (complete) it until the day of Jesus Christ.’ (Phil. 1:6) That means everyday we’re alive the Master Potter will be working on us. So it’s not an easy life to live for Christ, but as I keep saying, it’s very interesting and the rewards are unsurpassable. 

Nothing this world has to offer can ever surpass salvation and eternal life with Christ. Remember too as John says in his first epistle: ‘And the world paseth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.’ (1 John 2:17) Yes, my fellow believers, this world will eventually pass away, but if we do God’s will, we will live forever with Him. Let’s remember that and set our minds to it, despite all the many tests and temptations we might face, for our God is just faithful and true ! 

Now let’s go home declaring our Wednesday Wail, letting all and sundry know of our wonderful position in Christ. As one strong and sincere voice: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’ 

And if we’re serious, then we’ll endure with Christ right to the very end, and thus enjoy the promise of a more than glorious future for those who see it through to the end. Much LOVE!

…life is not a bed of roses…but a garden of thistles and thorns…that we need to work on…

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