26 Dec 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a joyful time, a means of restoring faith in you, a positive mental attitude, a way that displeases God, all whose works are truth, amidst all the anxiety and confusion, an open mind on all subjects to all people, as it is this day, be responsible, be your best for Jesus, boast in the Lord not yourself, Boxing Day, by the example that we faithful believers set, complete self-discipline, continue down the road to destruction and eternal death, crying out for your help, defeat the simmering unrest in our land, disrupt the workings of their souls, do your best, donkey's years, Dr. Charles Stanley, embrace your love and compassion, engaged in a labour of love, establish His covenant, faith, fervently pray, financial security, for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, freedom from fear, Friday chant, God is first and foremost in our lives, godliness, harmony in human relationships, He sware unto thy fathers, he that glorieth let him glory in the Lord, his ways of justice, holy spirit, hope of future achievement, I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the king of heaven, introduce a new flock of believers, Jesus Christ, learned his lesson, look your best, LOVE, material wealth, mercy, money is the last aspect of true wealth, more of us live sincerely for Christ, my power, Nebuchadnezzar's boast, omnipotent help, our bounden duty, our sinful world, play our cards right, poor emotionally and spiritually, problems are escalating, remember the Lord thy god, return backsliders to your fold, salvation, show them the error of their ways, sound physical health, stand strong and steadfast, tattooed on our faces, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the capacity for applied faith, the economics of the situation, the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth, the presence of God, the throne of grace, The Twelve Aspects of Wealth, these ungodly times, those that walk in pride He is able to abase, thou say in thine heart, true wealth, true wealth is what you are not what you have, trusting faith, truth, unexpected storms, use the discontent and dissatisfaction, wake up and smell the coffee, willingness to share one's blessings, wisdom, wisdom with which to understand people, wise guidance, without God's presence in your soul
Deuteronomy 8:18a. But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth,
Ah mih people, it’s Friday, Boxing Day, and most of the hoopla over Christmas Day has now died down. Hope that you and yours had a joyful time, me and mine certainly did. Sadly though, instead of Boxing Day continuing with a high degree of the Christmas Spirit, it’s now mostly about sales and returns of Christmas presents. The economics have taken over right away. But what to do eh? As Uncle Charles (Dr. Charles Stanley) says: ‘Look your best, do your best, and be your best as always for Christ.’
Now, I don’t know if some of us even know that it’s Friday, but just that it’s Boxing Day and a holiday for many people. So some of us might not even have offered up our usual prayer of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ We just know that it’s a long weekend, and if we play our cards right we can be off work off almost a week, (smile) what with the New Years Celebrations in the offing.
Anyway, the most important thing is that the birth of Jesus was celebrated, and He occupied a place in many hearts that He never occupied before, or not to such a great extent, and let’s hope and prayer that that Christmas spirit will continue right into the New Year and all though it; that 2026 will be a year when many more of us live sincerely for Christ! End of Sermon! (smile)
And today I’ve been led to a quote from my ‘I LOVE YOU’ Poster, which says; ‘True wealth is what you are, not what you have.’ And that makes a lot of sense, for despite all of your material wealth, if you don’t have the presence of God and godliness running within you, then you’re still poor where it counts the most; emotionally and spiritually. That’s why so many supposedly wealthy people are so unhappy and miserable. They allow their material wealth to disrupt the workings of their souls in a way that displeases God. And without a true sense of God, without His presence in your soul, you can never be truly happy, despite your vast amount of material wealth.
That brings us to this very important scripture where Moses warned the people of Israel about not forgetting the Lord when they got wealthy, not forgetting all the good things that He had done for them while they were struggling to survive in the wilderness. (Deut. 8:11-16) ‘And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth. But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.’ (Deut. 8:18)
So we need to remember that it’s God who causes us to get wealth, be it material or emotional. And that ought to remind us of the story of the Babylonian King, Nebuchadnezzar in the Book of Daniel, who boasted of building his great palace through his own might, and before the words were out of his mouth the Lord had decreed that he would go mad and eat grass like the animals for seven years. And it all happened as decreed. (Dan. 4:28-33) Blessedly for Neb though, at the end of the seven years of madness, he gained back his mental faculties and his kingdom and praised God with a marvellous testimony for his miraculous recovery. (Dan. 4:34-36)
Then, in conclusion he stated with all sincerity: ‘Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the king of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways of judgement (justice): and those that walk in pride he is able to abase (humble).’ (Dan. 4:37) Now, there we can see that Neb learned his lesson, but so many of us don’t, and unfortunately continue down the road to destruction and eternal death. We forget the scripture that tells us; ‘But he that glorieth (boasts), let him glory (boast) in the Lord.’ (2 Cor. 10:17) And in this boastful and selfish society we should all have those words tattooed on our faces so that we can remember it.
And now, something else pertaining to true wealth, it’s a list of ‘The Twelve Aspects of True Wealth,’ that’s been on the wall on the opposite side of my office for donkey’s years, but do you think I see it. No way! Just like I don’t see the many other reminders I have all over the office. But for our information, here are those 12 aspects of true wealth.
(1) A positive mental attitude. (2) Sound physical health. (3) Harmony in human relationships. (4) Freedom from fear. (5) Hope of future achievement. (6) The capacity for applied faith. (7) Willingness to share one’s blessings with others. (8) To be engaged in a Labour of LOVE. (9) An open mind on all subjects to all people. (10) Complete self-discipline. (11) Wisdom with which to understand people. (12) FINANCIAL SECURITY.
And the whole point of that exercise is to show us that lots of money is the LAST aspect of true wealth, not the first, as so many of us make it. Hope we learn that lesson well for the upcoming New Year, seriously concentrating on the first eleven, rather than the twelfth. (smile) Now, it’s time go to the throne of grace through our Friday Chant, seeking divine aid for all that ails us.
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!’
Yes friends, along with the sinful world, let’s truly wake up and smell the coffee this upcoming year nuh. It’s our bounden duty which we have been sadly neglecting. And the world is crying out for our help! Much LOVE!
…true wealth is what we have…when God is first and foremost in our lives…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
19 Dec 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a new flock of believers, always more loving, an intolerant attitude, and grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, anger, anxiety and confusion, As God for christ's sake forgave you, at the pinnacle of our growth, be better witnesses for Christ, be responsible and stay safe, be ye kind one to another, by the example, celebrate the incarnate birth of Christ, crying out for your help, defeat the simmering unrest in our land, discontent, dissatisfaction, evil speaking, faith, forgiving one another, Friday chant, grieve that my attitude is so often intolerant, hold Jesus near and dear in our hearts, holy spirit, how long you've waited for me, hypocritical actions, ideal time, impatient society, impress me, Jesus Christ, keep fresh the imprint, learn from past mistakes, let all bitterness, LOVE, make me more flexible, me myself and I, mentally enlightened, mercy, more understanding, my fretful impatience, my own need to grow, my own slow progress, no longer a spring chicken, often inclined to ask, omnipotent help, One Year Book of Bible promises, our motto for Christmas, our sinful world, problems are escalating, restoring faith in you, return backsliders to your fold, Ruth Harms Calkin, Slow Growth, stand strong and steadfast, stretched patience, superficial kindness, technologically advanced, tenderhearted, the error of their ways, the essence of selfishness, the poor are getting poorer, the rich are getting richer, the throne of grace, think and act like God, to turn things around, trusting faith, truth, unexpected storms, ungodly times, wake up and smell the coffee, why can't she change, why is he always so slow, wisdom, wise guidance, with all malice, wrath clamour anger be put away from you, ye are sealed unto the day of redemption
Ephesians 4:32. And be ye kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.
It’s down to six my people… six days before the big celebration of Christmas Day when all the world will ring out with joyful song, celebrating the miraculous, incarnate birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Yes, it’s that marvellous fact that has us busy with all sorts of preparations, but let’s make sure that the most important preparation takes place in our hearts, as we hold Jesus near and dear, and remember all that He’s done for us.
Sadly though friends, today we’re on an even later bus than yesterday, because I had to go out early for some tests and then run an errand that I could not do yesterday, so by the time I got back home, I had to rest, remember the ole fella is no longer a spring chicken, (smile) but today for sure, we’re going to be shorter than ever. So let’s get to this interesting and most appropriate poem from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin titled ‘Slow Growth.’ Who knows if I’ve ever shared it before, but I know that it relates to many of us in this greedy, busy and impatient society.
Please read with me. ‘In my fretful impatience I am so often inclined to ask “Why can’t she change?” “Why is he always so slow?” “Will they ever learn from past mistakes?” And then You begin to impress me With my own slow progress upward. I see your stretched patience. I remember how long You’ve waited for me. And I grieve that my attitude Is so often intolerant. O God, keep fresh the imprint Of my own need to grow And make me more flexible More understanding And always more LOVING.’
Yes my brethren, all of us can learn from those few words about the intolerant society we now live in. We’ve possibly never been this intolerant, although we are at the pinnacle of our growth; the richest, as well as the most technologically advanced, and mentally enlightened. And you’d think that that would guide us to share more of all that our new world has provided. However, that’s not true, for the rich are getting richer as they get greedier, the poor are getting poorer as they have what little they possess taken away from them, and rich nor poor seem to care about their fellow brethren as much as they ought.
The essence of selfishness, the picture of Me, Myself and I, has unfortunately taken over our world. There’s so much in our world that nobody ought to be starving or suffering from serious want, as so many are today, even in the supposedly rich and generous countries. That’s why this Christmas season is the ideal time to try and turn things around, as there’s so much giving and kindness, although a lot of it is hypocritical and superficial.
And the best way to begin is by following this wonderful advice from Bruh Paul to the Ephesians. ‘And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you with all malice: And be ye kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.’ (Eph. 4:30 -32) And for your information, that last verse is the Bible Promise of our poem ‘Slow Growth.’
So please, let’s use those words as our motto for this Christmas season nuh, opening our arms and hearts to others with the kindness and forgiveness that God has so generously bestowed on us through the sacrifices of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Now let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant to ask for divine help to do just that.
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 with all the confusion and wrongdoing in our world, it’s now time for us to wake up and be better witnesses for Christ… if we desire His help. Much LOVE!
…let’s think and act like God….showing…LOVE, peace, forgiveness, kindness, mercy and justice…to each other…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
14 Nov 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a fool's voice is known by multitude of words, a means of restoring faith in you, a multitude of people, a new flock of believers, a society speeding to hell, all for our benefit, be not rash with thy mouth, be responsible, better is the poor that walketh in his integrity, blaspheme against god, by the example we faithful believers set, Christian witness, crying out for help, desperate times of need, divine aid, every one that is hasty, faith, Friday chant, God holds the breath of your life in His hand, he that hasteth with his feet sinneth, he that is perverse in his lips, he that refraineth his lips is wise, holy spirit, in the multitude of words, is a fool, it is not good, Jesus Christ, joy and gladness, lay aside every weight, let not thine heart be hasty, let thy words be few, like chickens with their heads cut off, LOVE, make mistakes in the name of speed, mercy, more detrimental than beneficial, more haste less speed, omnipotent help, problems escalating, return backsliders to your fold, road rage, run with patience, rushing back and forth, salvation, seeing we are compassed about, show them the error of their ways, so great a cloud of witnesses, speed, spew venom, stand strong and steadfast, stay safe, talk a good talk, technological times, tend to plenteousness, tend to poverty, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, that the soul be without knowledge, the accent on speed, the confusion of these ungodly times, the race that is set before us, the simmering unrest, the sin which doth so easily beset us, the thoughts of the diligent, there wanteth not sin, to utter anything before God, traffic jams, trusting faith, truth, wake up and smell the coffee, wisdom, wise guidance
Proverbs 19:2b. and he that hasteth with his feet sinneth.
And then, finally, it was the big day, Friday! And all the shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ have ascended to heaven on high. Yes, there’s always much joy and gladness when the last day of our work week rolls around, meaning that the weekend is upon us, and our time is mostly ours to do as we choose. For a couple of days we can forget the twice a day traffic jams and the multitudes of people rushing back and forth like chickens with their heads cut off, in a hurry to get wherever they want to go, but getting nowhere quickly. Unfortunately, that’s how it is when we rush and push, for there’s always someone pushing back trying to go the other way.
But sadly, that’s the way of our society nowadays; everything is about speed, and we get impatient and angry if we have to wait a few seconds for the computer to warm up. It’s a foolish now for now society we currently live in. Just note the road rage that erupts over one car not moving quickly enough to suit the driver of another car, even when there’s no way much for the first car to move. But that’s the way we live in these technological times, where it’s all about how fast we can get things done, although we make too many mistakes in the name of speed.
And on days like today, where everyone is trying to get in and out as quickly as possible, so that they can enjoy the weekend sooner, matters usually get more tense and stressful, and the possibility of things boiling over greater than normal. That’s why the old people very wisely categorized it all with this simple saying, ‘more haste less speed.’ And most of us have realized that down through the years, but we still try to keep up with the speed of our society., so that we can feel or appear to be with the in-crowd.
Now there are several scriptures in the Bible that warn about haste. So to help us apply the brakes in this speeding to hell society, let’s check out a few of them nuh. And not surprisingly, several of them come from the wisdom of Cousin Sol. Listen to this first one from Proverbs. ‘Better is the poor that walketh in his integrity, than he that is perverse in his lips, and is a fool. Also, that the soul be without knowledge, it is not good; and he that hasteth with his feet sinneth.’ (Prov. 19:1-2)
There it is in black and white friends, from the wisest man ever! If you are too hasty with your feet you are committing sin. And taking that literally, can you imagine the amount of us that are committing that sin each and every day? Multitudes of us! Let’s hope that causes us to slow down some nuh. (smile) Then there’s this other wise saying from Cousin Sol. ‘The thoughts (plans) of the diligent tend only (lead surely) to plenteousness; but of every one that is hasty only to want (surely to poverty).’ (Prov. 21:5) Now that is something many of us can attest to, for we have all done things in haste that did not work out to our benefit. But our society keeps on doing it.
Now here’s another bit of wisdom from Cousin Sol, but this time as the preacher from Ecclesiastes, and it pertains to how we speak to God. He says: ‘Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be too hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon the earth, therefore let thy words be few. For a dream cometh through the multitude of business (effort or activity); and a fool’s voice is known by multitude of words.’ (Eccl. 5:2-3)
What marvellous advice my brethren! Because with our quick inclination, or predisposition to get angry at each other, we also get angry with God very quickly and spew venom towards or blaspheme against Him if we don’t get our way, or don’t get it as quickly as we desire. Now that’s certainly not a wise way to interact with Almighty God, your Creator and the One who holds the breath of your life in His hands. That leads to this other caution about our words. Cousin Sol wisely declares (steups!!!): ‘In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth (restrains) his lips is wise.’ (Prov. 10:19)
And that’s oh so true my people! When we unleash a barrage of words through provocation or whatever other reason, we invariably commit some sin through our anger and inappropriate words. So it’s obviously wise to take time to think before we speak. And finally we’ll look at this scripture that we all know, which tells us about endurance and patience. It comes from the author of Hebrews. ‘Wherefore seeing (since) we also are compassed about with (surrounded by) so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset (ensnare) us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.’ (Heb. 12:1)
Yes my faithful brethren, it’s time for us to settle down, take our time, and concentrate on patience and endurance, rather than haste and speed, for the latter two will only get us into more trouble than we truly need. So, with those words of wisdom, (smile) let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant seeking divine aid to help in these desperate times of need.
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 mih people, as usual, we talk a good talk, but unfortunately our actions don’t back up our talk, and until they do, meaning we aspire to better Christian witness, divine aid will not be forthcoming. It’s as simple as that! So please, let’s wake up and get our act together nuh! Remember it’s all for our benefit, not God’s! Much LOVE!
…the accent on speed in our society…is more detrimental than beneficial…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
07 Nov 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a legitimate goal, a means of restoring faith in you, a personal relationship with jesus, a strong bond, afflicted hearts cling to each other, amidst all the anxiety and confusion, be found in him, because of their faith in Christ, by the example we faithful believers set, can still die more to sin and self, Christian witness not good enough, companionship in sorrow, count them but dung, crying out for help, derail our stated purpose, develops betwen those who share tragedies, discontent, dissatisfaction, divine aid, divine commendation, divine summons, eat meat and solid foods, establishes the most intimate and lasting of ties, every Christian's goal, experience Christ's resurrection power, faith, forgetting those things which are behind, Friday chant, grow in spiritual maturity, has not arrived spiritually, help the rest of us to be responsible, holy spirit, I count all things but loss, I may win Christ, I press toward the mark, imputed to the converted sinner, intorduce a new flock of believers, Jesus Christ, let past guilt pull him down, LOVE, made conformable unto his death, mercy, not having mine own righteousness, of the law, omnipotent help, our sinful world can wake up, plenty belly and backbone, reaching forth to what lies ahead, relaxation, rest, return backsliders to your fold, salvation, seeking the deeper things of Christ, serious problems are escalating, share in Christ's sufferings, show them the error of their ways, spiritual disaster, stay safe, stop drinking only milk, suffered the loss of all things, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, that I may know him, the divinr righteousness, the excellency of the knowledge of Christ, the fellowship of his sufferings, the goal, the high calling of God in Christ Jesus, the joyful personal satisfaction, the power of his resurrection, the prize, the reward to be granted in heaven, the righteousness which is of God by faith, the simmering unrest, the throne of grace, the wise guidance, there is room for improvementcan still die more to sin and self, these ungodly times, this one thing I do, to handle these unexpected storms properly, to know christ deeply, to rest on past laurels, truth, wake up and smell the coffee, wisdom, with God's help
Philippians 3:14. I press toward the mark (goal) for the prize of the high (upward) calling of God in Christ.
And then it was Friday, a somewhat cool and cloudy day, with expectations of rain, but that did stop us from shouting out: ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ Yes friends, it is Friday and the weekend’s here with the promise of some rest relaxation and partying. Let’s hope that we get more of the first two and less of the latter, you know why. (smile)
And what’s on the agenda for today? I believe it’s talking about the high calling of God, as Bruh Paul wrote to the church at Philippi. In the 3rd chapter, he says: ‘I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung (rubbish), that I may win Christ. And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness which is of the law, but that which is of God by faith.’ (Phil. 3:8-9)
The long and short of the story is that Bruh Paul gives up all his past heritage, education and privileges, counting them as not important in comparison to knowing Christ. And to ‘win Christ,’ the scholars tell us, he had to give up all his religious credentials, all his own efforts and accomplishments so that he could believe and be saved, so that the Lord could impute him with the divine righteousness that’s imputed to the converted sinner because of their faith in Christ. And he wants to know Christ so badly, that he declares: ‘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)
Ah mih people, I wonder how many of us desire to know Christ so deeply, that we might both experience His resurrection power and share in His sufferings, and thus be more conformed to His death? Not too many of us, I dare say. (smile) And according to the scholars, ‘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.’ And that’s an awesome truth as many of us know from our personal sufferings with others. A bond much stronger and long lasting is developed between those who share tragedies.
And the important thing to note here is that Bruh Paul doesn’t believe He’s come to the point of conforming to the life he desires in Christ as yet, which is to know Christ to such an extent, experiencing His power, sharing His sufferings, being made like Him in death, and experiencing resurrection from the dead. The scholars tell us; ‘At this point in his life the apostle does know Christ, but not to the full extent possible. He has experienced His power, but not to the degree he desires. He has been made like Jesus in His death, but he can die still more to sin and self. He does “walk in newness of life,” but there is room for improvement. And unlike the perfectionists who claim to be sinless in this life, Paul admits that he is not. If the chief of the apostles does not feel he has “arrived” spiritually, then neither should we.’
And that’s a very good suggestion. (smile) But then, to add to all of that, Bruh Paul says: ‘Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended (laid hold of it): but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth (forward) unto those things which are before (ahead), I press toward the mark (goal) for the prize of the high (upward) calling of God in Christ.’ (Phil. 3:13-14) Now there’s an interesting and very legitimate goal for us to pursue! It won’t be easy, and it will take plenty belly and backbone, but with God’s help we can certainly achieve it.
And the scholars offer these explanations. ‘In ever pursuing his goal to know Christ (vs. 10) Paul refuses to let past guilt pull him down, or to rest on past laurels. Either could spell spiritual disaster.’ And that’s something we should also pay close attention to in the attainment of our own goal of knowing Christ. Guilt and past successes can easily derail our stated purpose. Then the scholars acknowledge: ‘The mark is the objective of verses 10 and 11 (i.e., knowing Christ). The prize is the joyful personal satisfaction of having attained it, as well as the divine commendation and reward to be granted in heaven for having reached this goal on earth. The high calling of God is the divine summons extended to the believer for salvation.’
And yes, it’s heavy stuff, but if we want to grow in spiritual maturity, thereby growing in Christ, then we need to delve deep into the harder and more difficult stuff, start eating meat and solid foods, stop drinking only milk. And we can certainly do it if we make up our minds to do so. Especially with divine aid that can now be gotten directly from the throne of grace. So let’s go there right now through our Friday Chant asking for help in time of need.
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!’
Oh friends, our prayer was heartfelt, but I doubt we will receive much divine aid, if any, because our Christian witness is simply not good enough. That means we have to improve it, if we want divine aid. So please, let’s concentrate on doing that nuh. Much LOVE!
…seeking the deeper things of Christ…ought to be every Christian’s goal…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
10 Oct 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a day and a thousand years, a new flock of believers, a pawn in the hands of Jehovah, a thousand years as one day, a timely message, a wannabe dictator, all the inhabitants of the earth are considered as nothing, all whose works are truth, at the end of the days, be not ignorant of this one thing, be responsible, Blessed be the name of God, crying our for help, defeat the simmering unrest, dissatisfaction in our land, driven into the fields, embrace your love and compassion, enormous amounts of food and drink, eventually meet their Waterloo, evil and ungodly agenda, free speech, Friday chant, gives it to whomsoever he will, God has an unlimited amount of time, God holds ultimate control over all worldly leaders, God raises up kings, he changes the times and the seasons, he does according to his will, he gives wisdom unto the wise, he know what is in the darkness, he removes kings, he reveals the deep and secret things, him that liveth for ever, his kingdom is from generation to generation, his ways justice, holy spirit, I blessed the most High, improve our Christian witness, infallible truth, it's only a matter of time, Jesus Christ, knowledge to them that have understanding, lifted up mine eyes to heaven, like Napoleon met his, lots of thanks and praise, LOVE, man was made from dust, mercy, miniscule amounts of time to God, my understanding returned unto me, none can restrain his hand, none can say unto him what doest thou, none can stay his hand, omnipotent help, one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, only one sovereign ruler in the universe, open their eyes of understanding, plenty joy and good cheer, plenty peace and love, praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, praised and honoured, prayer for divine aid, restoring faith in you, return backsliders to your fold, salvation, serious problems are escalating, stand strong and steadfast, stay safe, strife, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, thanksgiving weekend, the anxiety and confusion, the army of heaven, the error of their ways, the example that we faithful believers set, the light that dwells with him, the Lord and his word will endure forever, the most High rules in the kingdom of men, the sinful world, the throne of grace, these ungodly times, this good land of Canada, those that walk in pride He is able to abase, time is not an issue with God, time longer than twine, to dust he will return, to eat grass like animals, totalitarian laws, totalitarian rulers, trusting faith, truth, unexpected storms, until thou know, use the discontent, wake up and smell the coffee, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, wisdom, wise guidance
Daniel 4:32b. until thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.
At long last it’s Friday friends…another beautiful day on God’s great earth! That means it’s time to shout ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday and the weekend is here!’ Thanksgiving weekend in particular, so there will be lots of thanks and praise, plenty joy and good cheer, enormous amounts of food and drink, as well as of peace and LOVE! ‘Glory To God!’
Yes my brethren, this is a special weekend, for we have plenty to be thankful for in this good land of Canada. We’re not perfect, but we’re better than a lot of others, without the great amount of strife prevailing in the streets and totalitarian or dictatorship-like laws been passed by our government. And that’s a lot to be thankful for, because in many countries around the world free speech is no longer tolerated…even in our supposed democratic neighbor to the south, where a Wanna-Be dictator is breaking all sorts of laws to achieve and satisfy his selfish, evil and ungodly agenda.
And I do hope that someone could get it through his foolish head that there is ONLY ONE Sovereign Ruler in the universe; the One who created it and still rules it, and that he is only a pawn in the hands of the great God Jehovah! Someone should read him the scripture from Daniel when the Lord revealed to him king Nebuchadnezzars’ dream.
And Daniel, declared: ‘Blessed be the name of the God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are his: And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up (raises up) kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know (have) understanding: He revealeth the deep and secret things: he knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him.’ (Dan. 2:20-22)
Now, those verses emphasize that God is sovereign over all kingdoms and earthly rulers, holding ultimate control over who reigns and for how long. And it’s a very timely message for all the evil, ungodly and foolish totalitarian leaders that are around today, who think that they control things, that they are the last word on everything. And if they truly believe that, then somebody should quickly draw their attention to what happened to the boastful Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 4, when he boasted of his great might and power in building his royal palace.
But before the words were even out of his mouth the Lord announced that he would be driven from that same beautiful palace out unto the fields to eat grass and be like the wild beasts. And as sure as day follows night, king Neb became mad and behaved like the wild animals for seven long years. (Dan. 4:28-33) And why did that happen? As the Bible says: ‘until thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.’ (Dan. 4:32b)
However, the best part of the story is when the Bible reports: ‘And at the end of the days (time) I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation: And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed (considered) as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay (restrain) his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?… Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgement (justice): and those that walk in pride he is able to abase (humble.’ (Dan. 4:34-35, 37)
Oh my people, that’s the infallible truth! But unfortunately it took Neb a long and hard time to learn it, but learn it he did. How I wish that more of the totalitarian rulers in today’s world could experience such a fate so that their eyes of understanding could be fully opened. But there’s no need to worry, for each of these supposed invincible rulers will one day meet their own Waterloo, just like the supposed Emperor of the world, Napolean met his. It’s only a matter of time, for as the old people would say, time longer than twine.
And the Bible reminds us: ‘But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.’ (2 Pet. 3:8) In other words friends, time is not an issue with God, for He has an unlimited amount of it. he doesn’t have the same time restraints that we have. As one commentary puts it: ‘This is the idea of the verse—both a day and a thousand years are such miniscule amounts of time to God that it really makes no difference to Him.’ And until mankind recognizes and acknowledges that, we’ll all plod along thinking that we’re so much more than we really are, until the Lord chooses to show us differently.
Now, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant, seeking divine aid for all that’s wrong with our world. 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!’
But unfortunately my fellow believers, deep down, we all know that our discipleship is not what it ought to be, and we will not receive any divine aid, until we clean up our acts and improve our Christian witness! Much LOVE!
…from dust man was made…and to dust he will return…but the Lord and His Word will endure forever…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
26 Sep 2025
by randyobrien50
in Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a new flock of believers, Abraham prayed for Ahimelech, Abraham wavered not from God's command, Abram did not learn his lesson, Abram twice claimed Sarai was his sister, Abram's behaviour, be not afraid of them that kill the body, because of the Pharisees, by the example we faithful believers set, can do no more after that, Christians often live by fear not faith, crying out for God's help, defeat the simmering unrest in our land, discontent, dissatisfaction, divine aid, embrace your love and compassion, escalating problems, faith, favourite day of our work week, fear God who can kill both body and soul, fear him who after killing, Friday chant, give our leaders wise guidance, God commanded Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, God made the women of Ahimelech's household barren, God's omnipotent help, God's amazing grace, hath power to cast into hell, him will I also deny before my Father in heaven, him will I confess before my Father in heaven, holy spirit, improved witness for Christ, in the name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, lest they be put out of the synagogue, LOVE, many believed on Jesus, mercy, more than the praise of God, our sinful world, refused to publicly acknowledge Jesus, restoring faith in you, return backsliders to your fold, safe in the protection of God, salvation, show them the error of their ways, slay me for my wife's sake, stand strong and steadfast, standard of witness for Christ, stop fearing man, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the anxiety and confusion, the fear of God is not in this place, the fear of man bringeth a snare, the last weekend of September, the Lord healed the women's barrenness, the Lord plagued Pharaoh, the Lord provided a ram for the sacrifice, the promised child Isaac, the throne of grace, these ungodly times, they loved the praise of men, trusting faith, truth, unexpected storms, wake up and smell the coffee, we of little faith, whoso puts their trust in the Lord shall be safe, whosoever shall confess me before men, wisdom, wise guidance
Proverbs 29:25. The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe (secure).
And then, it was that favourite day of our work week, Friday! And all kinds of shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ obviously rose to high heaven, especially since Friday has turned out to be bright and sunny, not cloudy and damp like the last few days have been. Now, would you believe that we’re also getting into the last weekend of September and we haven’t seen one truly chilly day as yet. That’s certainly unusual, but we’ll take it, and say the Lord be praised. (smile)
Now today, we want to continue along the same path as yesterday, talking about being safe in the protection of Almighty God. And once more, we want to put forward this marvellous advice from Cousin Sol. ‘The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe (secure).’ (Prov. 29:25) And we see the truth of that statement right from the very beginning, when Abram went down to Egypt due to a famine in his land, and feared for his life because his wife Sarai was beautiful, and convinced her to say that she was his sister.
And so it was. The Egyptians indeed saw her as beautiful and Pharaoh took her into his house and paid Abram well for the privilege. (Gen. 12:10-16) But soon thereafter, the Bible tells us: ‘Then the Lord plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai Abram’s wife.’ (Gen. 12:17) When Pharaoh realized what had happened, he called Abram, upbraided him, and sent him away with Sarai and all his possessions.
But he still did not learn his lesson, for later on when he became Abraham and sojourned in Gerar, he again said that Sarah was his sister. This time to king Abimelech, who obviously took her into his household. But thankfully, the Lord appeared to the king and threatened him to give Sarah back to her husband. (Gen. 20:1-10) And when Abimelech rebuked Abraham, his excuse was: ‘Because I thought, Surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will slay me for my wife’s sake (on account of my wife).’ (Gen. 20:11)
And thus again, through God’s amazing grace, he was sent away with more riches. But the interesting scenario is that God had closed up all the wombs of the women in Ahimelech’s household because he took Sarah into his house. However, when all was said and done, Abraham prayed for Ahimelech and his household, and the Lord healed the women’s barrenness. Obviously friends, up to that time, our patriarch, both as Abram and Abraham, did not truly put his complete trust in the God whom he claimed to believe in.
But all of that was greatly improved by the time that Abraham received the promised child of Isaac and then the Lord told him to go and sacrifice the child. Abraham did not waiver, but went and did as the Lord commanded,. And we all know that the Lord provided a ram for the sacrifice instead of Issac. (Gen. 22:1-14) Now that’s the level of trust and faith to which we should all aspire, simply doing whatever God tells us to do, without querying it, knowing that He will eventually work it all out for our good.
Oh my brethren, it’s like Jesus warns in the gospel of Luke: ‘And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kil the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea,, I say unto you, Fear him.’ (Luke 12:4-5) And that’s the best advice we can ever receive; stop fearing man, who can only kill the body, but fear God, who can kill both the body and soul.
And we see that fear of man persisting even amongst the Jewish rulers of Jesus’ time. As John writes about people refusing to believe in Jesus despite all that he had done. ‘Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess (publicly acknowledge) him, lest they be put out of the synagogue. For they LOVED the praise of men more than the praise of God.’ (John 12:42-43)
And to this day, nothing much has changed in that respect. Many of us still refuse to confess Jesus publicly because we’re afraid of what mankind would do. Ah we of little faith! But let’s go home remembering these most important words of Jesus on the subject. ‘Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.’ (Matt. 10:32-33) Yes friends, those are good words for us to ponder on today, as we go to the throne of grace through our Friday Chant, seeking divine aid in these terrible 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!’
Oh my people, we pray good prayers, but unfortunately our Christian witness is not up to standard, so our prayers are not answered. Therefore, let’s concentrate on lifting the standard of witness for Christ nuh, for then, and only then will we receive divine aid! Much LOVE!
…many Christians claim to have faith…but too often it’s fear they live by…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
19 Sep 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a means of restoring faith in you, a new flock of believers, all for our benefit, amidst all the anxiety and confusion, as the shining light, be responible, brighten our lives with God's Word, by the example your faithful believers set, cause someone to fall, centres us out for destruction, confusion of these ungodly times, criminals, crying out for your help, defeat the simmering unrest in our land, discontent, dissatisfaction, divine aid, do something about our very evil society, drink the wine of violence, eat the bread of wickedness, embrace your love and compassion, enter not into the path of the wicked, faith, fight valiantly against demonic desires, fill our houses with spoil, find precious substance, find wealth, Friday chant, go not in the way of evil men, God's omnipotent help, holy spirit, if sinners entice thee consent not, improve our Christian witness, Jesus Christ, lack of responsibility, lay wait for blood, live righteously, LOVE, lurk privily for the innocent, make haste to shed blood, making a mockery of Christ, mercy, not live the lives of unbelievers, our sinful world, our trusting faith, plunder, problems are escalating, propagate violence, refrain thy foot from their path, return backsliders to your fold, robbed of sleep, robbery with violence, salvation, show them the error of their ways, smell it sweet and strong, stand strong and steadfast, stand up and live the righteous life, stay safe, swallow them up alive, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, that shineth more and more, the blessings of the righteous, the enemy tries to dim our light, the first step is always prayer, the job of Christians, the latest rage, the lawlessness of our society, the path of the just, the perishing of the unrighteous, the throne of grace, the weekend is here at last, the young taking advantage of the old, their feet run to evil, their sleep is taken away, they sleep not unless they've done evil, to live lives others desire, toothless and worthless laws, truth, turbulent times, unexpected storms, unto the perfect day, victims of crime, wake up and smell the coffee, walk not in the way with them, wisdom, wise guidance
Proverbs 4:18. But the path of the just is as the shining (bright) light, that shineth more and more (ever brighter) unto the perfect day.
And then it was finally Friday, and thus all the voices rose to heaven saying: ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday, and the weekend is here at last!’ Yes friends the weekend is indeed on the horizon and we just can’t wait for this day to be over, so we don’t have to worry about getting up early and rushing out to work. And thankfully too, today is another wonderful summer’s day, with the sun valiantly fighting off the bit of cloud cover that is trying to hide its light. It’s like the enemy tries to dim our lights when we try to brighten them with the Word of God and live righteously. But like the sun, we also need to fight valiantly against that demonic desire. (smile)
Now, yesterday we looked at Psalm 1, which explained very simply and precisely about the blessings of the righteous and the perishing of the unrighteous. Today, I want to continue looking at some other scriptures that admonish us with the same words of wisdom. And who better to get them from than Cousin Sol, the wisest man ever. Right in the beginning of Proverbs, he issues this warning.
‘My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not. If they say, Come with us, let us lay wait for (to shed) blood, let us lurk privily (secretly) for the innocent without cause: Let us swallow them up alive as the grave; and whole, as those that go down into the pit: We shall all find precious substance (wealth), we shall fill our houses with spoil (plunder): My son, walk not in the way with them; refrain (keep) thy foot from their path: For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood.’ (Prov. 1:10:16)
Oh my people, it sems as though Cousin Sol is speaking of one of today’s major problems; robbery with great violence. Every day we hear of some other violent robbery in the news media, and it’s certainly getting out of hand. And the sad part is that many of the crimes are being committed by young people on elderly folk. The young taking advantage of the old. That’s not the way it’s supposed to be. The young are supposed to help and look after the old, not rob them of their livelihood and/or lives. But with lawlessness of our society and the lack of responsibility of the young, that’s the latest rage.
When will the government wake up and do something concrete about the situation eh, for many of these criminals are either out on bail, parole, or already have long criminal records, while many of them are being encouraged by older criminals because they know the current Young Offender Laws are toothless and worthless. When you can violently kill other humans and only receive a three year sentence because you’re under the age of 17 or 18, and neither your name or picture can be mentioned in the news, as well as your criminal file is closed forever, but the victim’s name and picture can be spread all over the news, why won’t the young be enticed to commit violent crimes eh?
The problem with those who make these laws and thus propagate the violence, is that they don’t actually feel the hurt and grief because none of their LOVED ones are usually victims of these terrible situations. And it’s only when they actually feel the hurt and grief that they ever tend to do something serious about it. But that’s a sad way for a society to conduct its business. Anyhow, enough of my admonishment, let’s get back to some more scripture on the blessedness of righteousness, and the destruction of the unrighteous.
Listen to Cousin Sol one more time. ‘Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it (do not travel on it), turn from it, and pass away. For they sleep not, except (unless) they have done mischief (evil); and their sleep is taken away (they are robbed of sleep) unless they cause some to fall. For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence. But the path of the just is as the shining (bright) light, that shineth more and more (ever brighter) unto the perfect day.’ (Prov. 4:14-18)
Oh my fellow believers, I could not have put it any better than Cousin Sol has. So please, let’s wake up and do something serious about our less than righteous or rather very evil society nuh! It’s our job, that of Christians, to live the kind of life that will cause others to desire what we have, but unfortunately it seems that we are living the lives that the unbelievers desire. And that’s simply not kosher! No mih bredrin, it’s certainly not acceptable, for in doing so we’re just making a mockery of Christ and our Christian faith, which makes us unrighteous just like the unbelievers and therefore, like them, also centres us out for destruction.
Ah Lord eh! I don’t know what it will take for us supposed believers in Jesus Christ to really stand up and live the righteous life that He desires of us nuh, but I do know that our first step is always prayer. So let’s do that by going to the throne of grace through our Friday Chant, seeking 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!’
Unfortunately though friends, it’s nothing but a joke when we talk about the new believers following our example, because our current example is certainly not good enough. That means we have to improve our Christian witness before we can receive any divine aid. It’s as simple as that! So please, let’s get to seriously working on it nuh, for it’s all for our benefit! Much LOVE!
…Christians know what we ought to do…so why aren’t we doing it eh…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
29 Aug 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a means of restoring faith in you, a parable of covetousness and greed, all such rejoicing is evil, amidst all the anxiety and confusion, boast in your arrogance, boast not thyself of tomorrow, buy and sell and make profit, concentrate on the problems of today, contingency plans for tomorrow, continue there a year, defeat the simmering unrest in our land, discontent, dissatisfaction, divine aid, doeth it not, eat drink and be merry, enquire about the wisdom of our intentions, faith, for that ye ought to say, Friday chant, give first thought to God, go to now ye say, greed, holy spirit, honour worker's contribution to the labour scene, humdrum work life, hunger for power, if the Lord will, improve our witness for Christ, inhumane times, intorduce a new flock of believers, is not rich toward God, it is even a vapour, Jesus Christ, labour day weekend, labour unrest and violence, legalization of unions, LOVE, mercy, omnipotent help, our sinful world, rejoicing in boastings is evil, return backsliders to your fold, salvation, say to my soul, show them the error of their ways, so is he that layeth up treasure for himself, Soul thou hast much goods laid up for any years, stand strong and steadfast, stand up strong and fight for what we have, strife-filled times, sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof, take therefore no thought for tomorrow, take thine ease, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, that appeareth for a little time then vanisheth away, the horrific labour scenes, the living truth, the morrow shall take thought for itself, the throne of grace, these ungodly times, this night thy soul shall be required of thee, thou fool, thou knowest not what a day may bring forth, times of lawlessness and uncertainty, to him it is sin, to him that knoweth to do good, today or tomorrow, truth, unexpected storms, wake up and smell the coffee, we shall live and do this or that, we will go into such a city, what is your life, whcih thou hast provided, when anything goes, whose shall those things be, wisdom, wise guidance, workers have little say in working conditions, working conditions, ye know not what shall be on the morrow, ye rejoice in your boastings
Proverbs 27:1. Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.
And then it was Friday, a sunny but somewhat chilly day for August. It’s only about 15 degrees Celsius. But that did not stop the many shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ from going up to high heaven. There’s just something about Friday, whether it be hot or cold, that gets the populace in shouting mode. And it’s all because of the upcoming weekend, and the relaxing break from the humdrum work life that it promises.
And this weekend promises to be a big one, as it’s the last long weekend of the summer season, as well as the celebration of Labour Day on Monday. It’s a holiday celebrated on the first Monday in September, dedicated to honour the contribution of workers to the current Labour scene, to remember all the labour unrest and violence that happened in the 19th century, when workers were brutally illtreated by management and had very little, if any legal rights. Those demonstrations, that met with extremely violent reactions by the owners, thankfully led to the eventual legalization of unions in 1894.
Most of us take the current situation for granted, but it certainly wasn’t so in the beginning, and many workers suffered and died at the hands of owners to enshrine the work system we now have. But even today, you can see the owners fighting to get it back to where the workers have very little or no rights or say in their working conditions. Unfortunately, the excessive greed and hunger for power still lives within the ownership class. But let’s hope that today’s workers won’t allow the situation to deteriorate to what it was like a couple of centuries ago, although that would please the owners no end.
So, although this is a weekend for celebration, it’s also one for remembering the horrific labour scenes that took place not that long ago, and pledging to stand up strong and fight for what we now have, and not let those inhumane times ever happen again. End of Sermon. (smile)
And today, our scripture lesson is also very applicable to these greedy, selfish, and strife filled times. The words come from the wise writings of Cousin Sol in Proverbs. He admonishes us thus: ‘Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.’ (Prov. 27:1) And believe me people, those are indeed very wise words, especially in these times of lawlessness and uncertainty.
Remember Jesus warned us to ‘Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil (troubles) thereof.’ (Matt. 6:34) So, although some contingency plans can be made for tomorrow, we should not worry about it, and instead concentrate on the problems and challenges of today, for tomorrow will bring it’s own problems and challenges. And we might not even make it to tomorrow if we don’t handle today’s problems properly.
And Jesus also gave a wonderful parable that spoke to covetousness and greed, but also highlighted the problems of placing too much interest and trust in tomorrow. He spoke of the rich man whose land produced so much fruit, that he did not have enough room to store it all. But after a moment’s contemplation, he hit upon this wonderful plan.
‘And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow (store) all my fruits (crops) and goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat drink, and be merry. But the Lord said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.’ (Luke 12:18-21)
Yes friends, whatever we do, we must first give thought to God, and enquire about the wisdom of our decisions or intentions, for He might have completely different plans and ideas for us, like He did for that greedy, rich man. And that’s why James also warns us that rejoicing in boastings is evil. He puts it thus: ‘Go to now (come now), ye say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain (profit): Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.’ (James 4:13-14)
And that’s the living truth my fellow believers! Our earthly lives are very short and can be taken away from us at any time by Almighty God, our Creator and Life-giver. So, instead of boasting about what we will do tomorrow or in the distant future, James wisely advises: ‘For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that. But now ye rejoice in your boastings (boast in your arrogance): all such rejoicing is evil. Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.’ (James 4:15-17)
Oh my fellow believers, I could not put it any better than that, and it’s something we ought to seriously consider in our daily walk, especially in this season when anything goes. Are there good things we know we ought to do, and are not doing them? If so, we are only building up our sin account, which is not a wise move. So, let’s go right now to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant seeking divine aid in these tough and 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, despite our prayer, we still need to do our part; that’s improve our witness for Christ, because it’s our lack of good, strong and constant witness that’s caused the enemy to become so powerful in our world. And until we improve, divine aid will not be forthcoming. It’s as simple as that! Much LOVE!
…believers know what to do…but for one reason or another…we are not doing it…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
22 Aug 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a divided church, a dysfunctional church, a fraudulent scheme, a lalwless society, a means of restoring faith in you, a new flock of believers, a slap on the wrist, an irresponsible society, as thou Father art in me and i in you, better Christian witnesses, breakdowns, burnouts, change their evil ways, Christ's Church, Christ's church is ineffective, church unity, cliques, crying out for your help, defeat the simmering unrest in our land, denominations, divine help, doh-care attitude, doing our part, embrace your love and compassion, even as we are one, faith, fraudulent schemes targeting older folks, Friday chant, holy spirit, I have given them, improving our lives, information bombardment, Jesus Christ, living in harmony, LOVE, lowering our standards, may be made perfect in one, mercy, neither pray I for these alone, omnipotent help, our sinful world, petty reasons for divisions, problems are escalating, quick money, religions, return backsliders to your fold, salvation, Satan's heyday, scam callers on the telephone, show them the error of their ways, social media, spiritual unity, stand strong and steadfast, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, that they may all be one, that they may be one, the busyness of today's world, the example your faithful believers set, the greatest thing since sliced bread, the importance of being one, the ladder of success, the oneness of the church, the spiritual unity of the church, the throne of grace, the weekend is here at last, the world may believe that thou hast sent me, them which shall believe on me through their word, thous hast loved them as thou hast loved me, time to catch our breath, times of desperate need, to keep Satan at bay, trusting faith, truth, wake up and smell the coffee, wisdom, with the aid of technology
John 17:22. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them, that they may be one, even as we are one.
And that much desired day, Friday, has finally arrived, with all the accompanying shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday! The weekend is here at long last!’ Ah Lord eh! We make such a big to do over Friday and the weekend, that one would think it’s the greatest thing since sliced bread. (smile) But with the constant busyness of today’s world, that’s the only time many of us have to catch our breath and rest properly. And even then, some of us still have things like young children to look after, grocery shopping and other household chores to perform on the weekend, because we cannot fit them into our busy schedules during the work week.
Now, that eventually leads to burnouts and breakdowns, and we have to every so often take a look at our busy schedules and ask ourselves if it’s worth it? Is what we’re doing really improving our lives, moving us up the so-called ladder of success? Or are we simply wasting time, trying to accomplish things that are not helping us to truly enjoy our lives and the lives of those close to us. because what’s the purpose of life if we can’t enjoy a fair amount of it. And with all the social media stuff and the great influx of information that’s constantly bombarding us, it’s much more difficult to live a peaceful, quiet and joy-filled life today.
And when you add the scam callers on the telephone, sometimes you just want to run away and hide from it all. Like a call that just came through from a number that I don’t know, but everyday they keep calling. And my answer is, if it’s so bloody important then leave a message. Because, even in the way you answer the phone or answer their questions, with the aid of technology, they are able to build fraudulent schemes around those small bits of information. And I ask myself, if you can put all that time, energy and brain power into a fraudulent scheme, why not put into a legal one and thus avoid problems with the law, which you will encounter if you run the fraud long enough.
But no. It seems that we’re all out for quick money, and the fastest way to make it is through illegal means. And the sad part is that so many of us are falling for these fraudulent schemes. It’s also sickening to see that many of them are directly targeted towards older folks to defraud them of their life’s savings. And what happens to these criminals if and when they’re caught eh? Nothing much. More often than not they receive a slap on the wrist and told not to do it again. And do they listen, do they change their evil ways? Of course not! They jump right back into the fraudulent scheme of things.
Ah Lord eh! Our society has become so irresponsible, lawless, and doh-care, with standards dropping lower every day, and no proper consequences to make us change our evil ways. In fact in some cases, by watching the horrible and disgusting ways of our leaders, we are encouraged to persist in evil doing. And there’s not much that we as individuals can do about it, but the church, Christ’s church could stand up and do something about it! Yes, if it was in sync and not in such a terrible dysfunctional state; divided into so many religions, denominations, cliques, whatever, with most of the divisions refusing to communicate with the others.
That’s why Satan is currently having such a heyday in the world…Christ’s church, which was meant to keep Satan at bay, is so ineffective, it might as well not exist. And it can never become effective until it drops all the foolish things, and petty reasons that keeps it divided. Enough of my rant though! (smile) But there are several scriptures that talk about the oneness of the church, its spiritual unity, in particular this one where Jesus prays for the disciples and church unity.
‘Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word. That they all may be one; as thou, Father art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou has sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them, that they may be one, even as we are one. I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast LOVED them, as thou hast LOVED me.’ (John 17:20-23)
Oh my fellow believers, do you see the number of times in those few verses that Jesus specifies the purpose and overwhelming importance of being one. For if we’re not one, we cannot do anything worthwhile, we’ll all be working in different ways towards different goals. It’s as simple as that. Now there are more scriptures on the subject of church unity, but it will make the Bit too long, so we’ll leave that for tomorrow, if God spares life. (smile) So, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant, seeking divine help in these times of desperate need.
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 it’s good and wise to pray, to ask for divine help, but what about the other half of the equation; doing our part, living in harmony and unity, and being better Christian witnesses for Christ? Unfortunately, until we improve our act, the Lord will not offer much divine aid. Let’s remember that and do something to turn it around! Much LOVE!
…until Christ’s church comes together as ONE…Satan will continue to hold sway…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
15 Aug 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a means of restoring faith in you, a modest but strong nature, a new flock of believers, a proud look, a word to the wise is sufficient, backsliders, be clothed with humility, be full of kindness and respect for others, be responsible and stay safe, be subject one to another, became obedient unto death, being found in fashion as a man, being in the form of God, better Christin witness, casting all your care upon him, cleanse me of pride, CNE Fair, concrete jungle, emptied himself of his privileges, error of their ways, escalating problems, even the death of the cross, every tongue confess, faith, find rest for your souls, freedom from pride and arrogance, Friday chant, gentle and humble, give me the grace to accept correction, God gives grace to the humble, God is shaping you, God resists the proud, haughty eyes, he humbled himself, he may exalt you in due time, help me to embrace the meekness of Christ, holy spirit, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, humility, I am meek and lowly, Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God, let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, LOVE, made himself of no reputation, made in the likeness of men, manifest humility every day, may my words and actions, meekness, mercy, omnipotent help, our sinful world, painful circumstances, radiate Christ's presence, rejoice, salvation, seek forgiveness, show mercy, simmering unrest, six things doth the Lord hate, take my yoke upon you, teach me to be truly humble, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, thank you Lord for your hand at work, the example we faithful believers set, the Master Potter, the name above every other name, the name to which every knee must bow, those who walk in humility, took upon him the form of a servant, tough times, trusting faith, truth, unexpected storms, wake up and smell the coffee, welcoming the weekend, whose Spirit lives within me, wisdom, wise guidance
1 Peter 5:5b. All of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.
Now don’t be surprised that the Bit is so early friends. You know there must be a good reason for it, (smile) an early medical appointment in the concrete jungle called Toronto. And is it ever disgusting having to go there with all the road closures and the traffic jams and the building construction at every turn. Brother! I don’t see how people could live down there now nuh. Fifty odd years ago, when I first came here, living in Toronto was wonderful. But now it’s gotten so big and ugly and competitive, that it’s lost the glow it once had.
But that’s only my opinion. Other’s might have a much more positive take on the situation. And that doesn’t stop them from sending up loud shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday! And the weekend is here.’ Welcoming the weekend is one of the important things we do nowadays. And oh, the CNE, the Canadian National Exhibition is opening its yearly fair today down on the CNE Grounds on the Lakeshore, so there will be even more traffic than normal. But since we cannot do anything about any of the those things that annoy or frustrate us, let’s see what the Lord has for us to talk about today.
Well, it seems to be the very important but rather touchy subject of humility. And what is humility? Basically, it’s a freedom from pride and arrogance. In scripture, it’s sometimes referred to as meekness; a modest but strong nature. And one of the things that God hates is false and overbearing pride. As Cousin Sol says in Proverbs: ‘These six things doth the Lord hate: yea, seven are an abomination to him.’ (Prov. 5:16) And the first one is a proud and arrogant look, or haughty eyes. (Prov.5:17) And to help us deal with Humility, one of the recently published Prayer Cards by the In Touch Organization deals with that very problem.
Oh yes, it is a very serious problem in today’s world, as our society is much more interested in being proud and arrogant then being meek and humble. So please pray this prayer from that card with me. ‘Father, those who walk in humility radiate Christ’s presence. Teach me to be truly humble. Cleanse me of pride and help me embrace the meekness of my Saviour, whose Spirit lives within me. May my words and actions be full of kindness and respect for others. Give me the grace to accept correction, seek forgiveness, and show mercy. I welcome whatever You send into my life to humble me. You are the Master Potter. Thank You for Your hand at work. Amen.’
Now that’s a tough prayer to pray, because when you ask God for things like humility, be sure you’re going to encounter circumstances in which you’ll need it. And things like humility only come through tough and ofttimes painful circumstances. And the Prayer Card ends with this interesting note. ‘Is a current challenge teaching you humility? Rejoice – God is shaping you.’ Yes friends, we can only be shaped in the master Potter’s hands through tough times. But we must rejoice, for it’s bringing us closer to the perfect image of Christ.
And the scriptures the Prayer Card uses, comes, most appropriately from 1 Peter. ‘Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. 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. 5:5-7) And we all know that to be the gospel truth, although we don’t always manifest it in our lives. But to be truly like Jesus, we need to be always, or as much as possible, meek and humble.
Jesus said it Himself in the Great Invitation. ‘Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (from) me, for I am meek and lowly (gentle and humble) in heart: and ye shall find rest for your souls.’ (Matt. 11:29) Oh my people, there’s no one as humble as Jesus! Although He controls the universe, He never finds it necessary to boast, be haughty or arrogant, and for humans that comes only when you have an innate strength found in the person of Christ. It’s like Bruh Paul writes to the Philippians about Jesus’ earthly journey.
‘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 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) And we know the reward the Father granted Him for such humility and obedience: The exaltation of His name being above every other name, and that every knee should bow to His name, and every togue confess that He is Lord, all to the glory of the Father. (Phil, 2:9-11)
Likewise my fellow believers, if we humble ourselves, our heavenly Father will indeed exalt us in due time like Peter says. Now, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant, seeking divine help for our chaotic and disastrous world. 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 though our prayers might be heard, I believe the Lord expects, and most certainly deserves better Christian witness from us, before He floods us with divine aid. And they say a word to the wise is sufficient, so please let’s show ourselves to be wise nuh. Much LOVE!
…to be truly Christlike…Christians must manifest humility in their everyday lives…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
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