The Overwhelming Importance of Living for Jesus in this New Year of 2026!

31 Dec 2025 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 126:5.         They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.

Awright friends, it’s party time! New Year’s Eve is finally here and the party preparations are in full swing; food, music, clothing and noise makers are being prepared for the biggest party of the year! Some of us are looking at our lives and considering what would be good resolutions for the new year. But my people, there’s only ONE resolution we need to make, that’s to LOVE and sincerely follow Jesus; to grow in spiritual maturity and faith as we live for Him. 

Remember what He says in the Sermon on the Mount? ‘Therefore take no thought, 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 my brethren, our God knows exactly what we need, and if we keep Him first place in our lives, then He will make sure we don’t lack them. It’s like Bruh David says so simply, but awesomely in Psalm 23: ‘The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.’ (Ps. 23:1) It’s a proven fact that when you put your trust and faith in the Good Shepherd Jesus, you never lack for anything you truly need. 

And how do we know that Jesus is the Good Shepherd? Because He said so: ‘I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.’ (John 10:11) And that’s exactly what He did; give His life so that we could be forgiven of our sins! And again He says: ‘I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.’ (John 10:14) So there we have it; Jesus, as the Good Shepherd gave up His life for us, and knows those who belong to Him, and those who belong to Him, also know Him. It’s a beautiful two-way relationship, that you can never improve on! 

Now, being in a somewhat humorous mood, I decided that for the last day of the year, we should also consider the last poem in our One Year Book of Bible Promises. (smile) And it turns out to be a rather interesting one, that I’ve possibly never shared before, but is aptly titled ‘Day of Rejoicing.’ So please read with me: ‘Lord, all day long we’ve been laughing and singing. We’ve been shouting and praising. After weeks and months Of waiting and pleading You have wonderfully answered our prayers. Our hearts are filled with unspeakable joy. You promised that those Who sow in tears Shall reap in joy. It is happening, dear Lord To us… to us!’  

And yes, it is definitely happening to some of us, although relatively speaking to only a handful, for many are still weeping tears of sorrow. However, this season of Christmas and New Years is indeed a joyful one, where some who have shed tears all year long are now reaping the rewards of their toil and tears. 

And what’s the Bible Promise for our poem? It comes from Psalm 126:5-6, which says: ‘They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth (to and fro) and weepeth, bearing precious seed (a bag of seed to sow), shall doubtless come again with rejoicing (shouts of joy), bringing his sheaves with him.’  Meanwhile the book gives us the (NIV) New International Version, which says: ‘Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy carrying sheaves with him.’ 

And if you didn’t know it, sheaves are bundles of grain stalks laid lengthwise and tied together after reaping. So, basically we’re talking about those who toil and labour through tough times to sow good seed, both literally and figuratively, will eventually reap the rewards of joy and plenty. For remember there must be a planting before a harvest can be reaped, although many of us in this selfish and greedy society try to reap without planting. 

And I guess tonight there will be much joy and singing as the parties welcoming in the New Year of 2026 become full blown, and some even become riotous. And I don’t want to rain on the parade, (smile) but every year we go through the same motions, and so far the years have gotten worse than the previous one. Let’s hope that this one will be different, because as I believe I said yesterday, if it gets any worse than 2025 was, then crapaud smoke we pipe. 

But the important thing is that for it to get better, we believers in Christ Jesus must become more actively involved, pouring out our salt and light on a dark and flavourless world! And that’s the ONLY way it will improve. So if we desire improvements, let’s get up and make them! End of Sermon! 

Now, let’s go home declaring our Wednesday Wail, letting all and sundry know of our wonderful position in Christ Jesus. 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 for those who stick with Jesus right to the very end, there’s a promise that the future will be even more glorious than we can ask or imagine. So please, let’s stick to the very end nuh, so that we can enjoy that more than glorious future together! Much LOVE!

…be it the old year or a new one…whatever we need can be found in Jesus…

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   30 January 2023 John 14:6.

30 Jan 2023 Leave a comment

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

John 14:6.        I am the way, the truth and the life: no man cometh to the Father, but by me.

Oh friends, is it ever great to wake up to some sparkling sunshine, though with a touch of cloud cover! (smile) And are we ever thankful that the weather forecasters were wrong, and so far, we have not gotten the big deluge of snow they had forecasted. Yes, there was a fair amount of wet snow making the place wet and slippery, but there wasn’t that much of the heavy, staying kind. So, this Monday morning’s commute, didn’t have the snow creating havoc as it tends to do. 

And seeing that we are now on the penultimate day of this first month of 2023, I believe it’s as good a time as any to review our new year resolutions and see how we’ve done so far with them…or rather it. And why simply it, you ask? Because remember we only had one resolution for this year, that’s to follow Jesus more closely, to truly try and live for Him, to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world as He desires of us. To put His Great Commission into greater effect, spread His word, His holy gospel to all the world, make disciples of all nations, so that more people would come to know and LOVE Him like we do. 

That’s a big  part our earthly purpose my brethren. And all I want us to do today, is to take a few moments and review our lives this past month based on the terms we’ve laid out above. I think it’s best for us to check on our progress early on to ensure that we are truly moving in the right direction, rather than waiting till later and sadly finding that we haven’t been living up to our resolution. By checking our progress now, we give ourselves sufficient time to correct it, if necessary. 

Oh my fellow believers, please have no doubt that this year of 2023 will be a most important one in both the world and our individual lives. It will be a watershed year, a time to make many new and difficult decisions regarding many aspects of our lives. The buzzword right now is the ‘new normal.’ Our world is at a crossroads, it has changed a lot recently, and is still changing, and this year will see the culmination of many of those changes. And we have to be ready to make the right choices and decisions so that our lives will run smoothly. 

So, it’s obvious that if we don’t have Jesus, our Lord, Saviour, Guide and Leader, truly as the Number One Priority in our lives, we are very liable to make many wrong decisions as the situations in our lives change. That means we have to concentrate a whole lot on Jesus. First of all to sincerely accept that He is indeed as He says: ‘I am the way, the truth and the life: no man cometh to the Father, but by me.’ (John 14:6) And not only that, but also as He so truthfully proclaimed: ‘I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.’ (John 8:12) 

And my people, it’s absolutely essential that we live in the light of Jesus more than ever this defining year of 2023, when the shadow of darkness, the powers of the evil one are being built up and solidified with each passing day and doing their best to keep us dominated and chained up in the darkness of their sinful, ungodly way of life. Yes, as Peter so seriously and sincerely warns us: ‘Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.’ (1 Pet. 5:8) 

And that’s the indisputable truth! Satan’s efforts to ensnare the brethren have been greatly increased, he has upped the ante for our spiritual capture. That’s why it’s also important to do as Peter says: ‘Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.’ (1 Pet. 5:6-7) Now that’s also the gospel truth. Our God does care deeply for us, else why did He send His sinless and only Son, Jesus Christ to die on the cross to pay for our sins eh? 

Bruh Paul explains it in his letter to the Roman church: ‘But God commendeth his LOVE (demonstrated his own LOVE) toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.’ (Rom. 5:8) Wow, my fellow believers! Why would our God do such a selfless and compassionate thing if He didn’t truly care for us, His most precious creation eh? And if those reasons above don’t give us sufficient reason to believe that we desperately need Jesus in our lives, then let’s add these other most relevant reasons. 

Firstly, that He is the Prince of Peace! The ONLY ONE who can cause us to have satisfying peace and calm in the midst of the storms of life. Just think what He can do for our souls, if He can calm the mighty seas and winds by simply saying: ‘Peace be still:’ (Mark 4:39) Then Jesus is also our High Priest and advocate in heaven, working tirelessly on our behalf, constantly lobbying the Father to turn things around for us.  Hebrews tells us: ‘Wherefore in all things it behooved him to be made (he had to be made) like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.’ (Heb. 2:17)  

And John talks of Christ’s advocacy in his epistle. ‘My little children, these things I write unto you, that ye sin not (may not sin). And if any man sin, we have an advocate (an intercessor) with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation (redemption, atonement) for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.’ (1 John 2:1-2) Glory be my people! Jesus is indeed our everything! And now that the basic facts are before us, hopefully they will motivate us to get up and do our best to live passionately for Jesus in this pivotal year of our lives. 

Now, for those of us who sincerely believe, let’s go to the throne of grace with prayer for divine help, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn. As one voice: ‘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. We desperately need Your divine help, for You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems. 

Heavenly Father, we admit that we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but we know that 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. That’s why we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading with You to give us wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.  

And Father, we pray that you will ease the pain of the many who are suffering from negative situations. Please show them Your awesome grace and mercy, and keep Your promise that You’ll hear our prayer, forgive us, and heal our land 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 as always, if we expect to receive positive results from heaven, we must also make positive changes here on earth. Much LOVE!

…JESUS…our Be All…and our End All…We need no one else…

P.S. Please excuse the lateness of the Bit, but life happened to me, as it does to all of us! (smile) Much LOVE!

 Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ