The Overwhelming Importance of Christians Having the Same Mindset as Jesus, if They Desire to Live and Work for Him!

29 Dec 2025 Leave a comment

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

Philippians 2:5.         Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:

And if you are not one of the smart, blessed or lucky ones who have the day off, (smile) then you would have gone out to work in the bad weather this Monday morning, a few days before New Year’s Eve. Let’s hope you were careful on the roads, for most likely they were very treacherous, what with the combination of rain, snow, freezing rain and sleet we’ve had this weekend. 

Now, although Christmas Day has passed, the season isn’t over, so please keep the peace, LOVE and joy going, wherever you may be, for we desperately need to turn things around in our old world for this new year. Jesus is depending on us to do the jobs we signed up for when we became His disciples. It’s like He said: “If any man will (desires to) come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.’ (Luke 9:23) That means getting out there every day with a good attitude, even though life might not be the greatest, and showing the world a true reflection of Jesus. 

Obviously it’s not easy, but it’s what is expected of us as true and sincere believers. None of us like the idea of sacrificing anything, but do you think Jesus liked the idea of sacrificing Himself on that rugged cross? No way! But the Father asked it of Him, for our benefit, and since He LOVED the Father and wanted to be obedient to Him, He valiantly put His life on the line for us. 

And Bruh Paul puts it very plainly in his letter to the Philippians. ‘Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men (emptied himself of all his privileges): And being found in fashion (appearance) as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.’ (Phil. 2:5-8) 

Yuh see that my fellow believers, Jesus gave up everything He had to come to earth to die in our place. So, please don’t tell me that we can’t suffer and sacrifice a little on His behalf. And that’s exactly why our world is in such an evil and ungodly mess; we Christians have gotten too comfortable and fearful and thus are not willing to go to bat for Jesus as much as is necessary, but we keep crying out to Him for help when troubles befall us and bold facedly expect Him to help us. 

But don’t forget that it takes two to tango, and two hands to wash each other, so if we need Jesus’ help, we must do what He desires. Remember His words: ‘If you LOVE me, you will keep my commandments.’ (John 15:15) So all the empty talk we spout about Jesus is just that; talk without any worthwhile action. And please note that Jesus does not expect us to kill ourselves on His behalf, but just to do an honest day’s work, like we would do for our earthly employers. 

But then, that brings up the interesting question of how many of us in today’s greedy and selfish society, do an honest day’s work? Hn! Definitely not the majority, since the general trend is to do as little as possible, or as little as we can get away with. But that is not the way Jesus wants His believers to behave. 

Bruh Paul also made that quite clear when he said in his letter to the Colossians: ‘And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ. For he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: And there is no respect of persons.’ (Colo. 3:23-25) 

Yes friends, when we live for Christ, we are expected do things diligently and excellently, as though we are doing it for Him, for in the end we will receive the reward for our good attitude from Him. And likewise, if we do wrong, we will also receive the tough consequences for our disobedience, for God is impartial. Now, to help us handle all that is coming and will come against us, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, seeking divine aid in these turbulent 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 it’s up to us to do what our prayer says; turn from our evil ways, so that God can prosper us. And that in turn means going to God for help in all sincerity and truth…if we truly desire divine aid. Much LOVE!

…it’s high time Christians action what we so lustily sing…Stand up…Stand up for Jesus…the trumpet call obey… 

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit 13 January 2018 Revelation 1:3.

13 Jan 2018 Leave a comment

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

Revelation 1:3.   Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

What a fine bit of weather we’re having in my area these days! Glory be! I hope you can detect the note of sarcasm there. (smile) And it’s not only annoying but also dangerous. 

Yesterday afternoon I had a nap, and I could hear the rain falling against the window panes, then by the time I got up, about an hour later, the land was clothed in white. A snow blizzard had developed. And the wind howled all evening long. You can imagine the treacherous roads and many accidents on a Friday drive home that this kind of weather caused. 

But what to do eh friends? Not much. If you don’t have to go out, then don’t go out. And if you have to go out then be very careful, because you don’t know what lies beneath the sprinkling of snow on the ground. Enough about the weather though. It’s Saturday, so let’s check out some quotes from our friend Anselm, who aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. 

Here is the first one: ‘Don’t be distracted by criticism. Remember the only taste of success some people get is to take a bite out of you.’ Oh friends, that’s ever so important in our daily lives. Whenever we step out to do something, there will always be the naysayers, but you can’t let them distract you from pursuing your dream. Criticism can be useful, but that’s all some people know, so please don’t let them deter you. 

And then there is this: ‘Always be a first-rate version of yourself instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.’ More truth my brethren! The Lord has made us to be who we are, not someone else. So though you might admire other people and desire to be like them in some respects, it’s important that you follow the blueprint for your life and nobody else’s, because that’s where you will come up the highest. 

And the last quote says: ‘There is never a right time, you have to create the right time.’ Now I don’t necessarily agree with that, because, especially in God’s economy, there is a right and wrong time for some things. I’m sure that many of us have tried to do stuff, believing that the time was right, but it just never worked out. 

What I will say though, is that timing is of the utmost importance. But then again, if you’re a believer, you will be expected to wait on God’s timing in all that you do. And I can tell you from hard experience that His timing is very different to ours. (smile) So the long and short of the story is to learn to ignore useless criticism, be your best self, not try to be somebody else, and wait on God’s timing! 

Chuh! What is it eh? So far, every time I’ve written ‘timing’ I’ve spelt it wrong; except this time. Glory be! And talking about time and timing, let’s turn to our Bit. ‘Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.’ Yes friends, the Revelation is all about Christ, and it was shown to John so that he could reveal God’s programme to us. 

And the scholars offer these explanations. ‘1:1-3. Bare record: John was a witness of what he wrote. He saw the revelation and wrote what he saw. The blessing of verse 3 has a three fold condition: (1) read the book, (2) hear (understand) it, (3) keep (obey) it. 

The essential nature of prophecy was the communication of new truth (divine revelation). God has given it to be obeyed, not simply to be discussed and debated. The time is at hand in the sense that nothing else now has to occur before the Rapture and the beginning of the Tribulation Period.’ 

Oh my people, what a good God we serve, who tells us what to expect in the future. But He doesn’t just tell us for tell sake, He expects us to read, understand and obey what He says. And as Jesus told the woman who declared: ‘Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked (breasts which nursed thee). But he said, Yea, rather (more than that), blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.’ (Luke 11:27-28)    

Now are we doing that? Are we preparing for the time when things will change drastically? As James warns: ‘Be ye also patient; stablish (establish) your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh (draws near).’ (James 5:8) And I know some of you will say that was said so long ago. But it only verifies the fact that with each passing day the Second Coming of Christ draws nearer and nearer. 

And Bruh Paul also warns in Thessalonians: ‘For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.’ (1 Thess: 5:2) So fellow believers, it’s ever so important that we read, understand and obey the word of God, NOW, because Christ is coming back sometime, anytime. 

Listen to His words. ‘Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but the Father only.’ (Matt.24:35-36) Let’s consider ourselves dutifully warned friends! Much LOVE!

…to be forewarned…is to be forearmed…and thus prepared…