02 May 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a cloud of raised voices, a day of gladness and feasting, a good day, a means of restoring faith in you, a moment of intrigue, advanced society, amidst all the anxiety and confusion, anti-semite, assault the queen before me, back breaking work, be responsible, better wages, brave and just people, build a gallows, by the example your faithful believers set, can wake up and smell the coffee, crying out for your help, deliverance, dissatisfaction in our land, divine aid, embrace your love and compassion, ensuing violence, faith, for such a time as this, Friday chant, genocidal plan, Haman hanged on the gallows he built for Mordecai, hang him thereon, holy spirit, if thou hold thy peace at this time, introduce a new flock of believers, Jesus Christ, King Xerxes, Labour Day marches, LOVE, machination, mercy, money men, Mordecai, of sending portions one to another, omnipotent help, our sinful world, physical rest, pleased with his wife's advice, plots, problems are escalating, relief, return backsliders to your fold, salvation, see God's hand at work, sending presents to each other, serfs, show them the error of their ways, simmering unrest, smell it sweet and strong, stand strong and steadfast, stay safe, sub-plots, tedious work schedule, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, Thanks be to God, the Feast of Purim, the king's wrath pacified, the Lord does nothing without a plan, the story of Esther, the throne of grace, the weekend, these ungodly times, time with family, time with God, to exterminate the Jews, unexpected storms, use the discontent, whom the king delighted to honour, wise guidance, you're alive at the right time
Esther 4:14b. and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?
So we’ve finally come to Friday, and all those shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ have gone up to heaven like a cloud of raised voices. (smile) And we’re all thankful that the weekend is here with two days of much needed rest from the tedious work schedule of our supposedly sophisticated and advanced society. And it’s surprising how many people suffered and died for those two days off, with all the Labour Day marches and the ensuing violence. For if the money men had their way, the serfs would still be working long hours with little pay, as they once did.
But thanks be to God, that some brave and just people were willing to sacrifice their lives and fight for the right to have a short break and better wages from the back breaking work that then manifested itself. So please, let’s not abuse it, but use it to fulfill the purposes for which it was granted, physical rest and time well spent with family and God. End of Sermon! (smile)
It reminds us of the story of the Jewess Esther and her uncle Mordecai, in the Persian winter capital of Shushan, that resonated with much machination and intrigue, plots and sub-plots. In the reign of King Xerxes, (486-465 B.C) there was one anti-Semite at the top of the power chain by the name of Haman, who hated Mordecai and planned to destroy the Jews, but through God’s mysterious working power, Esther, the Jewess, married the Gentile king and became Queen of Persia.
However, no one knew that Esther was Jewish, and when Haman set his genocidal plan to exterminate the Jews, Esther’s uncle and guardian, Mordecai, through secret messengers, told her that she needed to go into the king and let him know about Haman’s evil plan. But understandably Esther was afraid, firstly, because she was Jewish and that discovery could cause her serious problems. But even worse, she could not go into the king unless He summoned her, which he hadn’t done for the past thirty days. Going in on her own accord would mean certain death, if the king did not welcome her, by holding out his golden sceptre to her.
So, unfortunately, Esther had those serious problems to consider if she wanted to help her Jewish race escape Haman’s evil machinations. But her uncle Mordecai kept bugging her to do it and she kept refusing, until one day after a refusal, he sent this interesting message to Esther. ‘Think not with thyself that thou shalt escape in the king’s house, more than all the Jews. for if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time (remain completely silent), then shall there enlargement (relief) and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father’s house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?’ (Esth. 4:13-14)
Now friends, that’s a good question to ask ourselves: have we been born for such a time as this? And most likely the answer is yes, for the Lord does nothing without a solid plan, and in whatever period of time you end being alive is exactly when God planned for you to be there. Finally, Mordecai’s argument got home to Esther and she sent him a message for all the Jews to fast for three days, then she would go into the king.
On the third day then, Esther went in unto the king, and as the Lord would have it, the king held out his golden sceptre to Esther, and in another moment of intrigue, Esther told the king of a banquet she intended to hold and for him and that Haman was also invited. But that night the king could not sleep and called for the records, wherein he saw how Mordecai had warned of the king’s traitorous chamberlains (eunuchs). Then the king asked what honour had been done for Mordecai and found that nothing had been done.
In the meanwhile, Zeresh, Haman’s wife advised him to build a gallows fifty cubits high on which to hang Mordecai, then speak to king about it the next day. Haman being pleased with his wife’s advice did exactly that. (Esth. 5:13) Then the next day when he saw the king, the king asked him: ‘What shall be done unto the man whom the king delighted to honour? Now Haman thought in his heart, To whom would the king delight to do honour than to myself?’ (Esth. 6:6) So he spewed out a whole lot of stuff about putting the kings clothing and crown on the man’s head and letting him ride the king’s horse, and parade him through the streets. Much to his surprise though the king told hm to do exactly all of that to Mordecai, which Haman in bittersweet obedience did. (Esth. 6:10-11)
After that, Haman was taken to the queen’s banquet and on the second day of the banquet, the king asked Esther her petition or desire, and she told him of Haman’s wicked plan to exterminate the Jews. The king became mad and went out into garden, while Haman threw himself on the bed where Esther lay, seeking mercy. But that only incensed the king more, and he said: ‘Will he force (assault) the queen also before me in the house. As the word went out of the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face.’ (Esth. 7:8) That signified that Haman was about to be executed.
Then Harbonah, one of the king’s eunuchs told him about the gallows Haman had bult for Mordecai. ‘Then the king said, Hang him thereon. So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then was the king’s wrath pacified (his wrath subsided).’ (Esth. 9-10) Oh my people, to really get all the intrigue in the story and truly see God’s hand at work you need to read he whole Book of Esther. In the end, the Jews were victorious and celebrated the Feast of Purim, on the fourteenth day of the month Adar to witness their victory; ‘a day of gladness and feasting, and a good day, and of sending portions (presents) one to another.’ (Esth. 9:19)
And now, for help in our own current battles, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant, seeking divine aid. Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help.
Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times.
We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
The truth of the story though, is that we supposed believers are not setting a good enough example for the unbelievers, that’s why there’s still so many of them, and until we begin doing better, divine aid will not be forthcoming! Much LOVE!
…the devil sets up lots of evil schemes…but with the Lord’s help…we can certainly dismantle them…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
28 Apr 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a human's work, a merciful forgiving and gracious God, Ai, all scripture is given by inspiration of God, answer our prayers, artificial intelligence, as fresh as the day it was written, blasphemed, christianity, correction, covetousness, damnable heresies, deceptive words, denying the Lord, destructive heresies, destructive ways, die early from boredom, difficult to know what is true, divine aid, ease the pain, evil be spoken of, exploit you, eyewitnesses to Jesus' majesty, faith, false prophets, false teachers, feigned words, find God's wisdom and truth, fit to a T, follow their pernicious ways, fully equipped, gospel truth, has not been idle, have a hobby, holy spirit, humble ourselves, humble servants, humility, inspiration of God, instruction in righteousness, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, judgement, justice, lack of physical activity, leading God's people astray, long time lingereth, LOVE, make merchandise of you, making them an example, mass confusion, mercy, missed the work activity, more depressed, of the many suffering from negative situations, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, people are lonelier than ever, people are not trustworthy, pray, productive activity, profitable for doctrine, read the Bible, reproof, retirement, righteousness, salvation, Satan and his fallen angels, scripture, sincere repentance, sincerely seek your face, social interaction, social media, social media foolishness, strong faith in Christ, suffer the consequences, superficial relationships, swift destruction, that those that came after should live godly, the BIBLE, the Bible is God's word to us, the drop of a hat, the God who heals, the long days of retirement, the Lord's promised to save the righteous and destroy the wicked, the man of God may be perfect, the power of the Holy Ghost, the power to solve our problems, the rigmarole, the throne of grace, the way of the truth, the work life journey, the work of a machine, their damnation slumbereth not, thoroughly furnished unto all good works, to alleviate our problems, truth, turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, what is artificial, wisdom, wise guidance
2 Timothy 3:16. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.
And the rigmarole continues, as another work week opens with a warm and sunshiny Monday with temperatures in the high teens. And many of us wonder, will this ever end? Unfortunately, not for a long while, if you’ve just begun the work life journey. And I’d be lying if I told you that you’d eventually get accustomed to it. But the amusing and sad thing is that when you retire after forty years of constant work, ofttimes you end up missing the early morning get up and get out to a job you never liked.
Now that especially happens when you don’t have a hobby or something to keep you occupied during the long days of retirement. That means in planning your retirement you ought to ensure that your days are occupied with some kind of productive activity, otherwise you tend to die early from boredom and a lack of physical activity and social interaction. And please don’t plan on using social media to occupy your time, for inexplicably, although we have so much activity and connections through all the many social media platforms, people are lonelier and more depressed than ever.
That’s possibly because the social media hook ups are not true friendships, but rather tenuous and superficial relationships, which cannot be trusted and are liable to change and /or deteriorate at the proverbial drop of a hat. And it’s somewhat amusing, but oh so sad when you see four supposed friends around a dinner table, supposedly out to spend valuable face time with each other, but each one is more focused on the phone in their hands than on their friends next to them. That’s what the social media foolishness has brought us to.
And to make matters even worse the latest invention, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is sweeping the world like crazy, so that now it’s more difficult than ever to know what is true and what is artificial; what is actually a human’s work and not that of a machine. And that once celebrated thing called truth, is now carelessly bandied about, apparently with there being more than one truth possible in these confusing times. But thankfully, to us Christians, there’s still only, and can ever be only ONE TRUTH; that of the Lord’s Word!
And it will do us good to remember that the Bible is God’s Word to us, and though it’s been around for ages, yet it’s still fresh as the day it was written, and if we read it, we will find God’s wisdom and truth on its pages. And Bruh Paul’s words to Timothy corroborate that statement. ‘All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished (equipped) unto all good works.’ (2 Tim. 3:16-17)
Yes friends, the Bible, God’s Word is the only tome that can provide all that mankind needs to live a good life, and sadly if many more of us would read and put it not practice, our world would be a much better place to abide in. And Peter in talking about the disciples being eyewitnesses to Jesus’ majesty, reinforces Bruh Paul’s statement to Timothy, when he writes: ‘Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation (origin). For the prophecy came not in old (any) time by the will of man: but the holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.’ (2 Pet. 1:20-21)
But of course! The prophets of old did not just write the Bible on their own, but were directed and instructed by the power of the Holy Ghost. Then Peter continues to make another invaluable statement: ‘But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily (secretly) shall bring you in damnable (destructive) heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.’ (2 Pet. 2:1)
And that’s the gospel truth, for there have always been false teachers, and these disruptive and troubled times are filled with a numerous amount of them, false teachers, who are leading God’s people astray. And Peter certainly knew what he was talking about when he continues. ‘And many shall follow their pernicious (destructive) ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of (blasphemed). And through covetousness shall they with feigned (deceptive) words make merchandise of (exploit) you: whose judgement now of a long time lingereth not (has not been idle), and their damnation (destruction) slumbereth not.’ (2 Pet. 2:2-3)
Oh my fellow believers, these greedy, covetous, deceitful and blasphemous times fit those words to a T! Too many of us are following false teachers whose destruction is already lined up. And I like how Peter makes his point for the destruction of the false teachers and those who foolishly follow them, by using the examples of Satan and his fallen angels, the destruction of the ungodly world by flood, with the only humans saved being the righteous.
Then he makes this monumental and true statement. ‘And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them with an overthrow (destruction), making them an ensample (example) unto those that after (afterwards) should live ungodly.’ (2 Pet. 2:4-6) Oh my people, those words should cut right to our very hearts, because all through the Bible the Lord has faithfully promised to save the righteous and to destroy the wicked and ungodly, and there are several examples where He did just that, so why do you think He will not do the same to our very evil and ungodly world today eh? That’s the wisdom of a fool!
So please, let’s get to seriously studying God’s Word and putting it into practice, so that being righteous and godly, we will be saved from God’s destruction. And for help to do that, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning battle Hymn, seeking divine aid. Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
And we know what’s necessary to receive divine aid; for a start, let’s try humility, prayer, repentance, and sincerely seeking God’s face. Much LOVE!
…God gave us His Word to live by…and if we don’t…then we’ll suffer the consequences…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
14 Apr 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a battle between the forces of good and evil, a crown of righteousness, a tough nut to crack, a true believer, be glad also with exceeding joy, be reproached for the name of Christ, being constant in prayer, blasphemed, blessed are you, Christian fellowship, companionship in sorrow, depressing times, discomfort, disobeyed your word, divine aid, ease the pain, endure tough times, establishes the most intimate and lasting of ties, ethical death, exceeding joy, experience Christ's resurrection power, faith, finished my course, finished my race, for the prize of the high calling in God, fortunate to have a job, fought a good fight, getting to know Christ better, give thanks to Jesus, happy are ye, heavenly Father, holy spirit, humble ourselves, humble servants, I press toward the mark, in times of need, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, keep pressing forward, keep your promise to prosper us, kept the faith, laid up for me, living for Jesus, LOVE, made more comformable to his death, make things right, mass confusion in our world, meditating on the scriptures, mercy, no sunday afternoon stroll, now ready to be offered, obtain a personal relationship with Christ, of the many suffering from negative situations, on their part he is evil spoken of, on your part he is glorified, one more day of life, physical death, Praise the Lord, pray, provide solace and comfort, rejoice, salvation, shall give me at that day, share in Christ's sufferings, show them your awesome grace and mercy, show this evil world, sincere repentance in our hearts, sincerely seek your face, smarten up, standing up for Jesus, stay close to Jesus, strong faith in Christ, suffer injustice for Christ's sake, suffer insults for Christ's sake, that I may know him, the fellowship of his sufferings, the fiery trial, the God who heals, the most intimate of ties, the only one, the power of his resurrection, the power that raised Christ from the dead, the power to solve our problems, the powers that be, the rewards are worth ipain, the righteous judge, the righteousness of God, the spirit of glory rests on you, the stormy winds of life howl around us, the throne of grace, the time of my departure is at hand, think it not strange, to alleviate our problems, truth, turn from our evil ways, unashamedly taking place, unnecessary purge, unto all them that love his appearing, walking with Jesus, we have all sinned, when his glory shall be revealed, wisdom, wise guidance, with each passing day, ye are partakers of Christ's suffering
Philippians 3:10. That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death.
One more Monday, one more day of life! And those of us who are fortunate enough to have jobs to go to in these distressing and depressing times have better say ‘Praise the Lord!’ instead of complaining about the dreariness and frustration that the job might cause, for there are many who would take your jobs in a jiffy, as they have recently lost theirs in the current unnecessary purge that’s so unashamedly taking place. And it’s only going to get worse if the powers that be don’t smarten up and make things right.
That’s why we always have to give thanks to Jesus and stay close to Him, for He’s the ONLY ONE who can provide solace and comfort when the stormy winds of life howl around us. Yes, we ought to be saying like Bruh Paul did to the Philippians: ‘That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death.’ (Phil.3:10)
And the scholars give this explanation of that verse. ‘This verse may also be paraphrased : “In order that I may personally know Him, that I might both experience His resurrection power and share in His sufferings, and thus I will be more conformed to His death.” Paul wants “the righteousness … of God (vs. 9) so that he can obtain a personal relationship with Jesus in actual day-to-day experience. This knowledge of Christ is obtained by experiencing in daily problems, needs, ministry, and so forth, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead.
Knowing Christ also entails participating in His sufferings. Paul desires to share in the Lord’s sufferings because they bring him into a deeper and more meaningful relationship with Him; companionship in sorrow establishes the most intimate and lasting of ties, as afflicted hearts cling to each other.
The result of participating in Christ’s suffering is that Paul is being made like Him in death. This word “death” has double meaning here, including inward and outward, ethical and physical death. As Jesus died in regard to sin on the cross, so Paul is doing more and more in his daily life. As Jesus was bodily slain, so the apostle, should Caesar’s verdict go against him, is prepared to be slain.’
Now, that is truly wanting to know Jesus! And thankfully, not all of us will be called to suffer on His behalf as Bruh Paul was. However, we all will have to endure some tough times if we are serious about living for Jesus. That’s just the way it is! There’s no other name in the world that can cause as much commotion and arguments than the name of Jesus.
So, if you intend to be a true believer, then you’d better prepare yourself to go through some stuff you won’t like. But the good thing about standing up for Jesus, is that the rewards are wonderful and certainly worth the pain and discomfort we might have to endure. Remember walking with Jesus is no Sunday evening stroll in the park, but a serious battle between the forces of evil and those of good.
Thus Peter wrote to the Jewish diaspora: ‘Beloved , think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as (to the extent that) ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. If ye be reproached (insulted) for the name of Christ, happy (blessed) are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of (blasphemed), but on your part he is glorified.’ (1 Pet. 4:12-14)
Yes friends, we will all suffer insults and injustices for Christ’s sake, and it’s not always easy to overlook them, but we have to, with the thought that we are suffering for His sake, and therefore glorifying Him. Consequently we need to do as Bruh Paul later said to the Philippians: ‘I press toward the mark (goal) for the prize of the high (upward) calling of God in Christ Jesus.’ (Phil. 3:14) That means we have to keep pressing forward, getting to know Christ better with each passing day, by meditating on the scriptures, being constant in prayer and Christian fellowship.
So that at the end we can say like Bruh Paul said to Timothy. ‘For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure (death) is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course (race), I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that LOVE his appearing.’ (2 Tim. 4:6-8)
Yes my faithful brethren, being a good and true disciple of Jesus is a tough nut to crack, but we can certainly do it, especially when we have the help of His Holy Spirit that indwells us. So, let’s do as we are commanded to in times of need; confidently but humbly go to the throne of grace in prayer. And we’ll do that through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn.
Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
And we can see from our prayer itself, that there are some things we need to do to receive divine aid, like humbling ourselves, praying and sincerely seeking God’s face. So please, let’s be wise and get to doing them nuh, so that we will be blessed with God’s awesome grace and mercy and forgiveness! Much LOVE!
…only as we sincerely seek to be more like Jesus…will we ever become more like Him…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
11 Apr 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a double minded man is unstable in all his ways, a life in sync with God's word, a life where there is effective prayer, a means of restoring faith in you, Abide in me, abiding in God's will, aggressive driving attitudes, an important proviso, an understanding heart, ask, ask and it shall be given to you, ask what ye will, be in agreement with God's will, be responsible, by the example that we set, confidence toward God, crying out for help, discern between good and bad, discontent, dissatisfaction, divine aid, do those things which are pleasing in his sight, driven with the wind and tossed, embrace your love and compassion, everyone that asks receives, faith, faithful believers, Friday chant, give therefore thy servant an understanding heart, good news, he that seeks finds, he that wavers, herein is my Father glorified, holy spirit, if any of you lack wisdom, if our heart condemn us not, introduce a new flock of believers, is like a wave of the sea, it shall be done for you, it shall be given you, it shall be opened, Jesus Christ, knock, let him ask in faith, let him ask of god, living a life of purity before God, LOVE, lustful things, mercy, my words abide in you, not doubting, nothing wavering, now for now desires, omnipotent help, our sinful world, pleasing in God's sight, problems are escalating, rain, return backsliders to your fold, right living, right living is an important part of successful living, righteous living, salvation, seek, show them the error of their ways, simmering unrest, so shall you be my disciples, stay safe, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, that giveth to all men liberally, that will I do, the anxiety and confusion, the Christian's journey, the importance of faith, the nature of the human animal, the promise of the weekend, the Sermon on the Mount, the standard of christian living, the straight and narrow path, the throne of grace, times of speed, to him that knocks it shall be opened, to judge thy people, trusting faith, truth, turbulent times, unexpected storms, ungodly times, upbraideth not, wake up and smell the coffee, we keep His commandments, weekday lifestyle, wet snow, whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, wisdom, wise guidance, without reproach, ye bear much fruit, ye shall find
Matthew 7:7. Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
Oh friends, I’m sorry to say that the sun did not win yesterday’s battle! No sir! By early afternoon the wet snow and rain began and lasted until the middle of the evening, and it was just my luck to get caught out in it as I had to go for some tests. So, you can imagine the driving was not the greatest, with too many of us still rushing and being rather aggressive in our driving attitudes. But that’s the nature of the human animal in these times of speed and now for now desires.
Sadly too, Friday opened with some big, fat snowdrops falling down, but that has now stopped, so it’s just wet and cloudy with the sun trying to make an appearance. Let’s hope it’s more successful than it was yesterday. But yuh know what? None of that stopped the ‘Thank God it’s Friday!’ prayer from rising up to heaven. Nothing seems to stop that, because we know on the other side is the promise of the weekend, which means a break from the same ole, same ole dreary, ofttimes frustrating weekday lifestyle.
But here’s some good news from our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. In the latter part of His Sermon on the Mount, He sincerely declares: ‘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) What a glorious, encouraging and assuring scripture that is my people! If we ask, we will receive, if we seek, we will find, and if we knock, doors will be opened to us. It couldn’t get any better than that.
However, there is one very important proviso to all that; whatever we ask for must be in agreement with God’s Will and Word, otherwise we’d just be asking for all sorts of wrong, foolish and lustful things! (smile) And there are several scriptures that attest to Jesus words, with a couple more from Him too. In talking to the disciples about His going away (ascension), He informs them: ‘And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.’ (John 14:13-14)
Then later on, when talking about the vine and the branches, Jesus tells the disciples: ‘If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto (for) you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.’ (John 15:6-8) Please note my brethren that it all depends on Jesus words abiding in us, and we doing His will, and bearing good fruit, so that the Father can be glorified.
Then there’s this famous passage from James on the subject of asking. He writes: If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not (without reproach); and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering (not doubting). For he that wavereth (doubts) is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.’ (James 1:5-8)
There now, we see the importance of faith and not doubting in asking of the Lord. And possibly the best example of that is when Cousin Sol became king of Israel, and in a vison, the Lord asked him his heart’s desire. We all know his marvellous reply. ‘Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?’ (1 Kin. 3:9) And the Lord was so pleased that he didn’t ask for riches and long life, or the lives of his enemies, that He made him the wisest and richest man ever! That’s what comes from abiding in God’s will and asking for sensible things. (smile)
Now that doesn’t mean you cannot ask for the desires of your heart, but they must be in line with God’s will. And John, in his first epistle says this about the topic. ‘Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then we have confidence toward God. And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him. because we keep his commandments, and do those things which are pleasing in his sight.’ (1 John 3:21-22) That says it loud and clear my brethren!
And the scholars offer this interesting explanation on those verses. ‘If our heart condemn us not: We have confidence toward God if our lives are in line with the standard of Christian living set forth above (vs.11-20). John is not saying that whether a person is right or wrong is simply a matter of how he subjectively feels about himself. That is why John has given so many indicators and commands for Christians to take note of and assess themselves by. And one of the great results of a life lived in purity before God is a life where there is effective prayer. Right living is an important part of successful living.’
Wow! I could not have said it any better my people! Our prayers won’t meet with much success until and unless our daily living is in sync with God’s Word and Will. It’s as simple as that. And we all need daily help to handle the many trials that come our way, so let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant, so that we can access divine aid in these turbulent times. Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help.
Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times.
We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
Now friends, we have offered up our prayer, let’s see to our right living nuh, otherwise no divine aid will be forthcoming. Much LOVE!
…salvation only begins the Christian’s journey…righteous living is what keeps it going…on the straight and narrow path…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
07 Apr 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a great calm, a modicum of hope and faith, a trade war, a world beset by evil, abide with you for ever, all have sinned, bear up under the stress and strain, called unto the fellowship of his son, calm our metaphorical storms, christianity, Christians, despite the trials and tribulations you are facing, disobeyed your word, ease the pain, endure hardness, establish you, faith, give you another Comforter, God is faithful, God-given desires, he dwells with you, He is faithful that promised, hold fast the confession of our faith, holy spirit, humble ourselves, humble servants, I will come to you, I will not leave you comfortless, I will pray the Father, if you love me keep my commandments, in the name of Jesus Christ, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, Jesus is the ONLY ONE, Jesus' light and love, keep you from evil, keep your promise to prosper us, leave you as orphans, life is not easy, like a good soldier of Christ, lost jobs, LOVE, mercy, monotonous regularity, negative situations, peace be still, praise Your Holy Name, pray, resolve to never give up, salvation, shall be in you, sincere repentance, sincerely seek your face, society is structured, stand up and fight, strong faith in Christ, tedious, that's the way, the best years of our life, the BIBLE, the church exploded with new saints, The Day of Pentecost, the God who heals, the living truth, the mass confusion in our world, the restrictive reins, the Spirit of truth, the storms of life, the throne of grace, the wind ceased, tiring, to alleviate our problems, to earn a living, to liven up the same old routine, trust our Triune God, truth, turn from our evil ways, unemployed, up and at 'em, when things are not going your way, who can offer comfort, wisdom, wise guidance, without wavering
John 14:18. I will not leave you comfortless (as orphans): I will come to you.
So, it’s up and at ‘em one more time, that means getting out to work on a Monday morning, something that many of us do with a monotonous regularity for numerous years of our life. Actually, for the best years of our lives. No wonder, after a while it becomes tedious and tiring and we just sometimes want to cry out for a change, for something to liven up the dreary same ole same ole routine.
Yes, we often long for a loosening of the restrictive reins that have us tied to a job that does not satisfy our capabilities or skills and act as a de facto killer to our God-given dreams and desires. But unfortunately, that’s the way our society is structured, and if you want to eat and have a roof over your head, then you’ve got to work, at least with some regularity. (smile)
On a serious note though, in this latest round of one foolish egotist’s doings, a trade war has erupted all over the world, and many have already lost their jobs, due to no fault of their own, and sadly, it appears that many more will if this nonsense isn’t curtailed as soon as possible. And it’s only when we don’t have a job to go to, with no prospects for one very soon either, that we do appreciate the boring, same ole, same ole tasks that we are forced to perform most days of our lives to earn a living.
Let’s hope that all those who find themselves summarily unemployed will wake up and see the light and turn their attentions seriously towards Jesus, for He is the ONLY ONE who can offer you comfort despite the trials and tribulations you might be facing. And I’ve been unemployed, so I know what I’m talking about. Jesus is always the best One to turn to when things aren’t going your way.
He might not always solve your problems quickly, or even solve them at all, but if you are sincere, He will provide you with a modicum of hope and faith that will keep you going through the tough times, in a calm, non-anxious manner, and not allow you to give up. And that’s always the first step in recovery; having a modicum of hope and the resolve to never give up.
You can trust Him to always be by your side. Remember what He promised the disciples before His ascension: ‘If you 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 for ever; 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 He did come to them, and consequently to us, on that memorable day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit began to indwell all believers and the church exploded with new saints. And since then, the Holy Spirit has indwelt every believer, acting as a Guide, Leader and Comforter on behalf of Jesus.
But there’s one thing that we must understand, that life is not easy, never was, and never will be, therefore we have to bear up under the stress and strain of whatever we’re going through, with the help of the Holy Spirit. As Bruh Paul sagely warns Timothy: ‘Thou therefore endure hardness (hardship), as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.’ (2 Tim. 2:3) That’s the living truth; we’ve got to stand up and fight the battles that come against us, all in the name of Jesus.
Meanwhile, the author of Hebrews puts it thus: ‘Let us hold fast the profession (confession) of our faith (hope) without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)’ (Heb. 10:23) And Bruh Paul also stated that fact, first to the church at Corinth: ‘God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ.’ (1 Cor. 1:9) And then to the Thessalonians: ‘But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish (establish) you, and keep you from evil (the evil one).’ (2 Thess. 3:3)
That means we can faithfully trust our Triune God to look after us and keep us safe when the storms of life revolt against us. Remember what Jesus said to the stormy waves and howling winds on the sea of Galilee? ‘Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.’ (Mark 4:39) So, if He can calm the real physical storm, why won’t He be able to calm our metaphorical ones eh? No reason whatsoever!
Now, let’s go straight to the throne of grace for help, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn as we’ve been instructed to do. Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world.
Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems. Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
So, it’s obvious from our prayer that there are certain things we need to do to get divine aid. We know them…so please let’s do them nuh! Much LOVE!
…in a world beset by darkness and evil…Jesus is the ONLY ONE who can overcome them…with His Light and LOVE…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
04 Apr 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a demonstration of God's power, a sign of God's miraculous provision, according to his riches in glory, after all these things do the Gentiles seek, all these things shall be added unto you, amidst all the anxiety, an understanding heart, an ungodly world, be responsible, believers, by Christ Jesus, by the example your faithful believers set, Christ died for us to have, christianity, Christians, climate change, confusion, crying out for your help, discern between good and bad, discontent, dissatisfaction, divine aid, do not worry, embrace your love and compassion, enjoy the abundant life, faith, fall outs, fervently pray, figments of our imaginations, Friday chant, God's unwavering support, guide us through, holy spirit, I am the good shepherd, I know my sheep and are known of mine, improve our witness for Christ, in the big desert of an ungodly world, in the face of hardship, introduce a new flock of believers, Jesus Christ, Jesus is our caretaker, led you forty years in the wilderness, long life, LOVE, make Jesus our light and life, manna form heaven, mercy, mirages, my God shall supply all your needs, oasis in the desert, our sinful world, our won oasis, problems are escalating, put God first He will put you first, restoring faith in you, return backsliders to your fold, revere the Lord, right down here on earth, salvation, seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, show trust towards our Triune Godhead, smell it sweet and strong, Solomon's humility, stay safe, stroms, take no thought, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the arduous journey, the BIBLE, the error of their ways, the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want, the throne of grace, the turbulent desert, the weekend, the wisest and richest man ever, these ungodly times, this chaotic world, thy shoe is not waxen old, to judge thy people, truth, unexpected storms, wake up and smell the coffee, wealth, what clothes shall we wear, what shall we drink, what shall we eat, wherewithal shall we be clothed, wisdom, wise guidance, your clothes are not waxen old, your heavenly Father knows you need all these things
John 10:14. I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of them.
And then it was Friday, and the climate change games continue. Yesterday the temperature was in the high teens, but with a big wind, today there’s not much wind, but although it’s sunny, the temp has dropped back into single digits, with a promise of them falling even further. So, who knows what to expect? But for sure, it doesn’t stop the loud shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ from rising up to heaven.
Apparently, nothing stops that as the weekend is our own li’l oasis in the big desert of an ungodly world. And thankfully, we have Jesus, our omnipotent Lord and Saviour, our ever-LOVING Shepherd to guide us through the turbulent desert called our world, filled with all sorts of storms, fall outs, figments of our imaginations and mirages. That’s why this scripture is ever so important. Jesus declares in no uncertain terms: ‘I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of them.’ (John 10:14)
Yes friends, that scripture should constantly be at the forefront of our minds, reminding us that Jesus is our caretaker, or as Bruh David so nicely puts it in psalm 23; ‘The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.’ (Ps. 23:1) Oh my brethren, when we make Jesus our light and life, then He takes care of us and all of our needs. As Bruh Paul so confidently says in Philippians: ‘But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.’ (Phil. 4:19)
And if you don’t believe that God can do that, then you need to remember how He fed the Israelites in the wilderness with manna for forty long years, while He said through Moses: ‘And I have led you forty years in the wilderness: your clothes are not waxen old upon you, and thy shoe is not waxen old upon thy foot.’ (Deut. 29:5) So you see, our God can indeed look after us.
And this commentary breaks down that verse thus, calling it ‘A Miraculous Preservation: The passage emphasizes that despite the arduous journey, the Israelites’ clothes and sandals remained intact, which is presented as a sign of God’s miraculous provision and care.’ And per it’s Significance: ‘This event is often interpreted as a demonstration of God’s power and unwavering support for his people, even in the face of hardship.’ That should certainly lessen our fears and assure us of the provision that God can provide.
But there’s one important proviso in that assurance my fellow believers. And Jesus in His teachings on worry from the Sermon on the Mount, put’s it like this: ‘Therefore take no thought (do not worry), saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:31-33)
Yes, as we said earlier, our Triune Godhead must continually be at the forefront of our thinking if we expect to enjoy the miraculous and abundant life that Jeus died for us to have, not waiting till we get to heaven, but starting right down here on earth. And we see from Biblical History how that can be miraculously portrayed in a believer’s life by the wonderful story of Cousin Sol’s humility and acknowledgement of Almighty God. It began when he became king after Bruh David, and the Lord in a dream, asked him what he wanted.
But instead of asking for wealth, long life, or the life of his enemies, he said: ‘And now, O Lord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or to come in. And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great people.’ (1 Kin. 3:7-9)
Tell me nuh, how many of us would have asked for that simple but very important attribute eh? Not too many! Most of us would have asked for wealth, long life and all the many baubles and bangles that the world continually jingles in our faces. But Cousin Sol’s unusual request thrilled the Lord so much, that He not only gave him the wisdom and understanding he asked for, but also made him the wisest and richest man ever! (1 Kin. 3:10-14)
Oh my people, that shows what’s possible when we sincerely revere the Lord and do our best to observe His law. Unfortunately though, in this current world, that isn’t happening as much as it ought to, but we can surely seek help to improve by going to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant. So, altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help.
Oh, heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times.
We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
And our prayer says it all; if we need divine aid, then we desperately need to improve our witness for Christ. It’s as simple as that friends. So, let’s get to doing that nuh…if we genuinely want divine help in this chaotic world! Much LOVE!
…put God first…and He will also put you first…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
31 Mar 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a dry and cloudy day, a merciful forgiving and gracious God, a woman of sorrowful spirit, all ye that labour, barren for many years, christianity, Christians, come unto me, covenant relationships, dance to God's music, day and night, divine help, faith, faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers, faithfulness, feel lost and helpless, find rest unto your souls, for the help of his countenance, gentle and humble, go out like a lion, God is a refuge for us, God is the the wisest being in the universe, good riddance to you, Hannah, he is my defence, He only is my rock and my salvation, heavy laden, help in troubled times, holy spirit, hope thou in God, humble ourselves, humble servants, I am meek and lowly in heart, I shall not be moved, I shall yet praise him, I will give you rest, In God is my salvation and my glory, it takes two to tango, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, keep Jesus first and foremost, LOVE, mercy, my burden light, my expectation is only from him, my hope is only in God, my refuge is in God, my soul, my soul thirsts for God, my tears have been my meat, my yoke is easy, negative situations, obedience, Our Father, pour out your heart before him, poured out my soul before the Lord, praise Your Holy Name, pray, prosper us, raise up your faith, salvation, seek your face, Selah, severe ice storms, sincere repentance in our hearts, sincerity, sinned and disobeyed your Word, spiritually or physically dark, sunshine peeping through the clouds, take my yoke upon you, thank you for life and strong faith in Christ, the BIBLE, the everlasting truth, the God who heals, the great invitation, the last day of March, the mass confusion in our world, the most appropriate person to ask for help, the power to solve our many problems, the prophet Samuel's mother, the rock of my strength, the throne of grace, the wisest move, to shine a little light in our lives, truth, turn from our evil ways, turn to Almighty God for help, turn to God for guidance, ungodly times, wait thou only upon God, went with them to the house of God, where is thy God, who art in heaven, Why art thou cast down o my soul, why art thou disquieted within me, wisdom, with the voice of joy and praise, ye people
Psalm 62:8. Trust in him (the Lord) at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.
And this last day of March, which began as a wet and miserable, dangerous Monday, has by midday, thankfully become a somewhat dry and cloudy day with a bit of sunshine peeping through the clouds. It’s been a tough weekend, what with the constant rain in most of the city and severe ice-storms on the outskirts, that left many people without heat and light for several days. And it’s definitely not a pleasant scenario when you have no heat or light, your food is spoiling, and when you look out, or venture to go out, all around you are trees, buildings and roads covered with dangerous ice.
Some people even complained about tree branches, laden by the weight of the ice falling on their houses and being incapable of doing anything about it. And the ice storms are infinitely more dangerous and problematic since you can’t clean them up as easily as the snow storms. So, it seems the month of March intends to go out like a lion, just as it came in. Well good riddance to you! (smile)
Ah friends, in such situations the wisest move is to raise up your faith and turn to Almighty God for help, with prayerful words like these from Psalm 62. ‘My soul, (silently) wait thou only upon God; for my expectation (hope) is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defence; I shall not be moved (shaken). In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.’ (Ps. 62:5-7)
Yes my people, when our world is dark, either physically or spiritually, or both, and we’re not sure what to do, our faith must be strong enough to automatically turn us to God for guidance and to shine a li’l light in our lives. And these words of Bruh David in the next verse of Psalm 62, exemplify exactly what we mean. He solemnly declares: ‘Trust in him (the Lord) at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.’ (Ps. 62:8)
And that’s certainly the everlasting truth! For God is our Creator, He’s wiser and more powerful than us. Actually, He’s the wisest and most powerful being in the entire universe, therefore in times of trouble, He’s the most appropriate person to turn to for help. And there are a couple of perfect examples of troubled people doing just that.
The first one is Hannah, the prophet Samuel’s mother. She had been barren for many years and thus looked down upon as unworthy of being a wife, but one day she got her act together went into the temple and cried out to the Lord for a child. The priest Eli saw her mumbling and thought she was drunk. ‘And Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the Lord.’ (1 Sam. 1:15)
Meanwhile in Psalm 42 -My Soul Thirsts for the Lord – Bruh David is having his problems, is hungering for God, and thus poignantly writes: ‘My tears have been my meat (food) day and night, while they continually say unto me, Where is thy God? When I remember these things, I pour out my soul in me: for I had gone with the multitude, I went with them to the house of God, with the voice of joy and praise, with a multitude that kept holyday (a pilgrim feast). Why art thou cast (bowed) down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance (presence).’ (Ps. 42:3-5)
Yes my brethren, both Hannah and Bruh David poured out their souls to the Lord in their time of need, and He came through for them. Hannah got the son she desired, Samuel, and Bruh David eventually found the peace of mind he was seeking. So it’s very good advice to turn to Almighty God for help in troubled times. Furthermore, throughout His Word, the Bible, He’s promised on numerous occasions to help us when we feel lost and helpless, but we need to make the initial approach.
And what greater promise of help is there than Jesus’ Great Invitation? None whatsoever! He states with heartfelt sincerity: ‘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) Now, who else could make such an outstanding promise and also have the awesome power to keep it eh? Only our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! That’s why it’s of the utmost importance to keep Him first and foremost in our lives.
So, since we’re all in a spot of trouble, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, seeking divine aid in these crazy and ungodly times. Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
Now friends, let’s remember that it takes two to tango, so therefore, if we need divine help, then we’ve got to do our part and dance…dance to God’s music of obedience, faithfulness, sincerity, etc. etc. Much LOVE!
…covenant relationships cannot be successful…if only one partner is keeping there part of the covenant…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
28 Mar 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a city that is set on a hill cannot be hid, abdicated our position, afraid of speaking up for Christ, become contented with the easy life, Bible, busy doing our own work, by the example we set, cause our passion to rise up, chaotic times, Christian shortcoming, christianity, Christians are not activating their saltiness, Christians are not shining, crying out for help, defeat the simmering unrest in our land, disastrous times, discontent, dissatisfaction, divine aid, divine help, faith, flavourless, Friday chant, glorify your Father which is in heaven, go to hell in a handbasket, good for nothing, have salt in yourselves, heralds the beginning of the weekend, holy spirit, if any man desire to be first, if the salt has lost it s flavour, if the salt have lost it saltiness, introduce a new flock of believers, it giveth light unto all that are in the house, Jesus Christ, Let your light so shine before men, lit a fire in some hearts and souls, living up to the expectations of Jesus, LOVE, major goal, make it through the week, mercy, neither do men light a candle, not good enough witnesses for Christ, not injecting enough salt into society, not making the kind of difference expected of us, omnipotent help, our basic problem, our earthly purpose, our sinful world, peace with one another, pride, problems are escalating, put it under a bushel, restoring faith in God, return backsliders to your fold, rise in the negative schemes of the evil one, salt is good, salvation, Satan's darkness, see your good works, self-centredness, shine in the world's darkness, show the suffering hordes, simmering unrest, stand strong and steadfast, TGIGF! Thank God it's Good Friday, the error of their ways, the fate that awaits our progeny, the generation that gifted the world to Satan, the God-sent day if Friday, the gospel of Jesus, the light of the world, the same shall be last, the servant of all, the throne of grace, the way to truth light and salvation, their bright freeing light, to be cast out, trodden under foot of men, truth, unexpected storms, unsalted, wake up and smell the coffee, wherewith will ye season it, wisdom, wise guidance, wouldn't look good on our resume, Ye are the light of the world, ye are the salt of the earth
Matthew 5:13a & 14 a. Ye are the salt of the earth … Ye are the light of the world.
And though Friday’s opened somewhat damp and cloudy, the shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ still go up, because it heralds the beginning of our long-expected weekend. Yes, our major goal, from the time Monday rolls around, is to make it through the week, until that God-sent day of Friday. But truthfully, we ought to have a bigger and better perspective than that, like making a positive difference in our workplaces, our homes and wherever else we may go. In other words, living up to the high expectations of Jesus for His disciples.
Expectations like this one: ‘Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour (flavour), wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.’ (Matt. 5:13) Oh my people, there’s no doubt that too many of us have lost our salt, no longer have that salty flavour we need to make a difference for Jesus!
Why? Who knows? Possibly because we don’t have time to do God’s work since we’re too busy doing our self-centred work. Or we are afraid of the possible consequences from speaking up for Christ? Or, we’ve simply become fat, lazy and contented, from the good earthly life we’re living. But whatever the reason(s), it’s obvious that we’re not making the kind of difference expected of us, we’re not injecting into our society enough of that most important substance, salt, or the gospel of Jesus, and the amazing LOVE that flows from it, otherwise our world would not be so angry, hateful, and strife-filled.
It’s truly sad to see so many supposed Christians behaving just like the non-believers. Oh, we might get righteous when we go to church on Sundays, but on Mondays we go right back to the same worldly, unchristian behaviour. Remember friends, we’re supposed to be in the world, to show the heathen how to live for Christ, not of the world; that’s to be living like them. And I like how the gospel of Mark reports Jesus’ comments on the subject. ‘Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his saltiness (its flavour), wherewith will ye season it? Have salt in yourselves, and peace one with another.’ (Mark 9:50)
And the scholars explain that ‘Salt from the Dead Sea contains impurities and becomes easily stale and unpleasant in taste. Salt in yourselves is the distinctive quality that marks the person devoted to God. The reference to peace ties in with verse 33, which precipitated this whole discourse.’ That’s the argument the disciples were having about who would be the greatest amongst them, while journeying through Galilee to Capernaum, which led Jesus to clarify the matter in His kingdom: ‘If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all.’ (Mark 9:35)
Now, that should also be something we believers pay close attention to, for in this age, pride and self-centredness are rampant and no one wants to be a servant but to be served continually. And that flows very nicely into our next Christian shortcoming. Yes, being unsalted and flavourless is not the only one. (smile) No! We’ve also abdicated our position of being the light of the world as Jesus expects us to be. When He was here on earth, He was the light of the world, (John 8:12) but when He left, He transferred that designation to His followers, so that they could shine in the world’s darkness and show the suffering hordes the way to truth, light and salvation.
As He so clearly puts it: ‘Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle (lamp), and put it under a bushel (basket), but on a candlestick (lampstand); and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.’ (Matt. 5:14-16)
Yes my brethren, that’s what we ought to be doing; lighting our lamps for Jesus and proudly showing them to the whole world, so that they can be relieved of the restricting darkness that Satan desires to contain them in. It’s like Jesus said, a city that is built on a hill, cannot hide it’s light. Consequently, we ought to have our light shining brightly to all and sundry, as though it was situated on a hill, so that it can be seen far and wide. That’s our earthly purpose!
Oh my fellow saints, can’t we see how our world is suffering so terribly because of the sudden rise in the negative wiles and schemes of the evil one? And are we going to simply leave it to go to hell in the proverbial hand basket? I certainly hope not! Just think of the fate that awaits our progeny if we allow that to happen. And it certainly won’t look good on our resumé as being the generation that gifted it to Satan because of our lazy, fearful and ungodly behaviour. Nuff said! But I do hope that we’ve lit a fire in the hearts and souls of at least some of us, that will cause our passion to rise up and help us do better. (smile)
Now, if it’s divine help we need to improve, then let’s go to the throne of grace through our Friday Chant, seeking it, in these chaotic and disastrous times. Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help.
Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times.
We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
Ah friends, we all know our basic problem is that we’re not good enough witnesses for Christ, and until we improve in that area, divine aid will not be forthcoming! So, let’s get a move on nuh! Much LOVE!
…like the weather…the devil is turning our world dark and fearful…because Christians are not activating their saltiness…nor shining their bright freeing light into Satan’s darkness…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
24 Mar 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a guiding principle, a lack of spiritual guidance, a lack of spiritual leadership, a purpose for life, breathe some godly revelation, busy bodies, cast off restraint, chaos, christianity, coast along on our laurels, command and exhort, desires to bless us, destruction, dies from apathy, dog eat dog world, eat their own bread, entitled to a good living, even when we were with you, every man did that which was right in his own eyes, faith, fell on hard times, for doing as little as they can, forgot God, get as much as they can, get with the programme, gossip, help in times of need, holy spirit, humble servants, idle hands are the Devil's workshop, if any would not work, in a spiritual context, in those days, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, keep your promise to prosper us, lack of a strong work ethic, lack of divine guidance, LOVE, meddlesome ways, mercy, ministered unto the Lord, Monday, negative consequences, neither should he eat, no open vision, no prophetic revelation, no sense of godly direction, nothing for free, please ease the pain, praise Your Holy Name, praying, refuse to work, salvation, show this evil world, sincerely seeking God's face, social media, some which walk among you disorderly, staring them full in the face, strong faith in Christ, suffering from negative situations, taking stock of ourselves, thank you for life, that frustrating day, that kills a societyeasy to coast along on our laurels, the BIBLE, the fabric of society, the God of our forefathers, the God who heals, the importance of having a vision, the mass confusion in our world, the master of death and destruction, the power to solve our many problems, the same old work cycle, the throne of grace, the word of the Lord was precious (rare), there was no king in Israel, this we commanded you, times of entitlement, to alleviate our problems, truth, turn from our evil ways, we are our worst enemies, went their merry way rejoicing, where there is no vision the people perish, wise guidance, with quietness they work, without a sense of direction, without lifting a finger, working not at all
2 Thessalonians 3:10. For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.
And then it was Monday, that disturbing and frustrating day, when we begin the same old, same old work cycle again. (smile) But if we want to eat, and have a roof over our heads, some kind of rewarding work is necessary in this dog eat dog world. For no one’s giving you anything for free these days, but that doesn’t stop many of us from being lazy and not wanting to work, believing that we’re entitled to a good living without lifting a finger.
Remember though, what Bruh Paul wrote to the Thessalonians in his second letter. ‘For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat. For we hear that there are some which walk among you disorderly, working not at all, but are busy bodies. Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread.’ (2 Thess. 3:10-12)
Oh my people, how wonderful it would be to implement such a system in these times of entitlement when a large body of our population hates and refuses to work, but delights in indulging in much gossip and meddlesome ways, especially on social media! Many of us would certainly be going hungry. Sadly, the work ethic that existed for generations has now disappeared and everyone wants to simply get as much as they can, for doing as little as they can. But that’s what kills a society, not what builds it.
The problem is that our society has reached such a high level of knowledge and technology, as well as prosperity, that it’s fairly easy to coast along on our laurels and get by. However, when too many people are merely coasting along in life, the fabric of the society soon begins to fall apart and the society eventually dies from apathy and lack of a strong work ethic. As the scholars tell us, ‘idle hands are the Devil’s workshop.’ And that’s no lie! Satan doesn’t want us doing anything that would enhance our society or standard of living, for he is the master of death and destruction.
That brings us to these wise words of Cousin Sol from Proverbs. ‘Where there is no vision (prophetic vision or revelation), the people perish (cast off restraint): but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.’ (Prov. 29:18) And that’s oh so true my people! But what does it mean?
This commentary explains it thus: ‘The phrase emphasizes the importance of having a vision, a guiding principle, or a purpose for life. Without such a vision, people are prone to unrestrained behavior and ultimately fail to thrive. Some translations use the word “perish” or “cast off restraint” to convey the idea that without a vision, people are left without a sense of direction or purpose, leading to negative consequences. Meanwhile, in a spiritual context, it refers to a lack of divine guidance or revelation, a lack of spiritual leadership.’
And we see that happening very clearly back in the days when the Israelites were ruled by judges. The Bible tells us: ‘In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.’ (Judg. 21:25) And that’s exactly the evil and ungodly way that our society, or rather our world is moving; everyone doing their own thing, with no sense of godly direction. The Book of Samuel also gives us insight into the problem when it says: ‘And the child Samuel ministered unto the Lord before Eli. And the word of the Lord was precious (rare)in those days; there was no open vision (no prophetic revelation).’ (1 Sam. 3:1)
The scholars explain that’ the severity of Israel’s apostasy (cf. Judg. 21:25) caused a dearth of God’s revelatory work. The condition was perpetuating and self-defeating (cf. Prov. 29:18). By God’s grace, the prophetic institution would receive renewed impetus and standardization in the person and work of Samuel.’
Oh by God’s grace, I wish we could have someone or some people powerful enough to breathe some godly revelation into today’s crazy, hateful and resentful society. But as has happened to every society which rose to great heights by working diligently and with a God-given purpose, but then forgot God and went their merry way rejoicing, they eventually fell on hard times, with chaos and destruction staring them full in the face.
Now, is that what we want for our society…what we want our children’s children to experience? I very much doubt it. But if we don’t start taking serious stock of ourselves RIGHT NOW, and turn from our evil ways back to the God of our forefathers, then that is the fate that will possibly befall us, but for sure, our progeny. So, with the Lord’s promise of coming to the throne of grace for help in times of need, let’s do that right now nuh, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn.
Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
And it’s good to remember some of those things required to receive divine aid; like humbling ourselves, praying, sincerely seeking God’s face, turning from our evil ways, etc. etc. So, if we truly want it, let’s get with the programme nuh! Much LOVE!
…we are our worst enemies…foolishly turning away from God…when all He desires to do is bless us…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
17 Mar 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a great reason, a merciful forgiving and gracious God, a new day's dawned, alleviate our problems, annoyances, as a fruitful vine, back to work, believers, blameless, bless the LOrd o my soul, blessed are the undefiled, blessed is every one that feareth the Lord, christianity, Christians, commanded us to keep thy precepts diligently, consider it in thine heart, converting the soul, covenant stipulations, crowns thee with lovingkindness, decisions of a judge, disappointments, disobeyed your word, divine aid, ease the pain, eat the labour of thy hands, enduring for ever, enlightening the eyes, faith, faithfully promised to hear our prayers, fools despise wisdom and instruction, forget not all his benefits, forgives thine iniquities, frustrations, Godf's plan of creation, going to church, grace, handles whatever comes against us, happiness, happy shalt thou be, have good things, heals thy diseases, his tender mercies are over all his works, holy spirit, humble ourselves, humble servants, in heaven above, in keeping of them is great reward, it may go well with thee, it shall be well with thee, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, judgements, keep his commandments, keep his statutes, keep his testimonies, keep your promise to prosper us, know therefore this day, LOVE, making wise the simple, mass confusion, mercy, more to be desired than gold, negative situations, partner with God, petty resentments, pray, prolong thy days upon the earth, redeems thy life from destruction, rejoicing the heart, relationship, renewing our faith, salvation, satisfies thy mouth with good things, seek him with the whole heart, sincere repentance, sincerely reverence the Lord, sincerely seek your face, statutes, strong faith in Christ, sufficient rest, sweeter than honey, testimonies, that walketh in his ways, the BIBLE, the commandment of the Lord is pure, the earth beneath, the fear of the Lord is clean, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, the fruit of thy labour, the God who heals, the judgements of the Lord, the law of the Lord is perfect, the Lord he is God, the pitfalls of life, the testimony of the Lord is sure, the throne of grace, the weekend here, there is none else, they warn thy servant, this evil world, thy children like olive plants, thy wife shall be fruitful, thy youth is restored as the eagle's, to make Jesus our Lord and Saviour, to turn from our evil ways, true and righteous, truth, walk in God's ways, walk in the law of the Lord, we have all sinned, wisdom, wise guidance, with thy children after thee, written laws
Psalm 128:1. Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord; that walketh in his ways.
And in accordance with God’s great plan of creation, another new day has dawned, thankfully not rainy like the last two, and we have also opened our eyes to see it, another part of God’s great plan. (smile) Unfortunately though, that new day is called Monday, which means getting back to work after the quiet and restful weekend and once again experiencing all the frustrations, annoyances, irritations, disappointments and resentments that will undoubtedly crop up during the day.
But if we have made good use of the weekend, by getting sufficient rest, going to church and renewing our faith and confidence, then we will be able to handle whatever comes against us in Jesus’ name, with the awesome help of His Holy Spirit. Now, isn’t that alone a great reason to make Jesus our Lord and Saviour eh? For sure! And when you add all the other benefits we receive by making Him the Lord of our lives, it’s inconceivable that anyone could ever refuse to accept Him as the Number One Person in their lives.
And we all know what Psalm 103 says about the Lord’s benefits: ‘Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with LOVING-KINDNESS and tender mercies; Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.’ (Ps. 103:2-5)
Yes Friends, that’s some of the wonderful benefits we receive when we partner with Almighty God, through His Son, Jesus Christ. And we’ve got to pay close attention to that word partner, because it doesn’t all happen automatically, but is dependent on us playing our part in the relationship. And I believe Psalm 128 gives us a good idea of how that works.
It says: ‘Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord; that walketh in his ways. For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands (the fruit of thy labour): happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee. Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of (in the heart of) thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table. Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the Lord.’ (Ps. 128:1-4)
Now we all want to have those good things; happiness, eating the fruit of our labour, a fruitful wife and many responsible children. But it only comes when we sincerely reverence the Lord, walk in his ways and keep his commandments. And the opening verses of Psalm 119, agree with that, as they say: ‘Blessed are the undefiled (blameless) in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord. Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart. They also do no iniquity: they walk in his ways. Thou hast commanded us to keep thy precepts diligently.’ (Ps. 119:1-4)
There again, we see the responsibility expected us of from God, basically to keep His commandments, obey and revere Him, seeking Him with our whole hearts, not a part of them. But Moses possibly says it best, or rather more explicitly, when he told the Israelites as he reminded them of their responsibilities.
‘Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the Lord he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else. Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee (you may prosper), and with thy children after thee, and thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth (live long in the land) which the Lord thy God giveth thee for ever.’ (Deut. 4:39- 40)
Now there’s no mistaking what the Israelites and consequently we modern day believers need to do to see the Lord’s blessings on our lives. And for our information, the scholars explain that ‘The law is identified as testimonies…statutes…judgements. The “testimonies” denoted the covenant stipulations; the “statutes” were laws written down or inscribed on some suitable medium; and the “judgements” were the decisions of a judge (cf. Ps. 19:7-9).’
And those are also some very interesting verses from the pen of Bruh David, as he writes about God’s Law is Perfect. Please read with me: ‘The law of the Lord is perfect, converting (restoring) the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.
The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring for ever: the judgements of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb (the drippings of the honeycomb). Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward.’ (Ps. 19:7-11)
Oh my people, what a great and happy world we would have if many more of us kept the Lord’s law instead of Satan’s lawlessness! Bruh David explains it so excellently; it makes wise the simple, restores our soul, rejoices our hearts, it’s true and righteous, more desirable that gold, sweeter than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb, it warns us about the pitfalls of this life and last but not least it brings great rewards to those who revere the Lord and keep His law!
It could not get any better than that my fellow believers! However, the Lord’s law is not always easy to keep in this sinful and ungodly world, but being the wise and compassionate Sovereign He is, He’s also provided a way for us to get His help; that’s by going to the throne of grace in times of need. So let’s do that right now nuh, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn.
Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems. Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face.
So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems. Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
And even in our own prayer, we voice the same things God expects of us; prayer, sincerely seeking His face, and turning from our evil ways. So how do we expect to get help if we don’t put those important things in place eh? Much LOVE!
…the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge…but fools despise wisdom and instruction… (Prov. 1:7)
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
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