03 Sep 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a divine means of showing man, abundance, anger, bad attitudes, be therewith content, before many witnesses, christianity, clear direction for my life, come to know and love christ like we do, confessed a good confession, courage, creativity, curse, do not worry about tomorrow, don't put off for tomorrow what you can do today, drown men in destruction and perdition, erred from the faith, faith, fall into temptation and a snare, favour, fight the good fight of faith, follow after righteousness, glory to God, go out and share blessings, godliness, godliness with contentment is great gain, gospel truth, greed, having food and raiment, holy spirit, into many foolish and hurtful lusts, it is certain we can carry nothing out, jealousy, Jesus Christ, lay hold on eternal life, lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, looking forward to tomorrow, LOVE, material wealth is relatively insignificant, meekness, mercy, negative word, O man of God flee these things, on a late bus, patience, penultimate day of our workweek, pierced themselves through with many sorrows, professed a good profession, prosepr, resentment, ruin and destruction, running down money, running down the riches of the world, salvation, seeking God is to be our first priority, seep into your soul, self-control, self-discipline, sophisticated alarm systems, succeed, sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof, supernatural wisdom, take no thought for the morrow, talent, the ambition to be rich, the antidote to loving money, the BIBLE, the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil, the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself, the root of all kinds of evil, the rush to accumulate more than enough, the Sermon on the Mount, they that will be rich, thieves break through and steal, thieves do not break through and steal, thou art also called, to strive after as much money as possible, today's challenges, truth, undeserved blessings, we brought nothing into this world, where moth and rust doth corrupt, where neither moth and rust doth corrupt, where your treasure is there will be your heart also, which some coveted after, wisdom, your goal in life
Today’s Scrip-Bit 3 September 2026 Matthew 6:19.
Matthew 6:19. Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt (ruin), and where thieves break through and steal.
Oh friends, we’re on a late bus today because the ole fella wasn’t feeling up to scratch earlier on and thus lay in bed longer than usual. However, thankfully, after the rain yesterday, this Thursday, the penultimate day of our work week, has blossomed into a bright and sunshiny warm day! Glory to God! And unfortunately, some of us are looking forward so much to tomorrow, Friday, that we are in danger of not concentrating properly on today’s challenges. As the ole people would say, don’t put off for tomorrow what you can do today.
And per Jesus: ‘Take no thought for the morrow (do not worry about tomorrow): for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil (trouble) thereof.’ (Matt. 6:34) In other words, tomorrow will bring enough problems and challenges of it’s own for you to worry about, so concentrate on not having to carry forward today’s. And with those awesome words of wisdom, (smile) let’s turn to some scriptures that talk about a subject which many of us believers still need to learn. That’s the unwise attitude of running down money and the material things and pleasures of the world.
In the first place, Jesus warned us in the Sermon on the Mount: ‘Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt (ruin), and where thieves break through and steal.’ (Matt. 6:19) And we see the wisdom in that every day, where thieves break through the most sophisticated alarm and computer systems and steal oodles of supposedly worthwhile stuff. Meanwhile, what isn’t stolen becomes old and rusty, or eaten by moths. So what’s the wise thing to do?
Listen to Jesus: ‘But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt (ruin), and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.’ (Matt. 6:20-21)And all of that is the gospel truth my people! There are no thieves, rust, nor moths in heaven to ruin your treasures there. Then it’s obvious that wherever your treasures are stored that’s where your heart and mind will be focused. So if they are stored here on earth, then you will be focused on earthly things, and bad attitudes like greed, jealousy, resentment and anger will eventually seep into your soul as you strive to build up your earthly treasures.
But if they are stored in heaven, then you will be focused on heaven. And believe me, that’s the best place to have one’s focus, for all that we have here on earth will stay here when we depart his life, but what we store in heaven will be there waiting for us when we get there and will last us forever! Wow! That brings us to this awesome teaching from Bruh Paul to Timothy on the subject. He begins with this wise warning. ‘But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment (clothing) let us be therewith content.’ (1 Tim. 6:6-8)
More gospel truth my people! And its’ exactly what I just said, we can’t carry anything from this world with us. And according to the scholars ‘This is a divine means of showing man that since material wealth is relatively insignificant, he should pursue the important things mentioned in verse 11.’ Yes friends, we come with nothing and carry out nothing, so why kill ourselves to accumulate earthly treasures eh? Not wise at all.
Oh, material stuff is necessary in our lives, and we must accumulate some to live on during rainy periods or old age, but the greedy rush to accumulate more than enough is certainly unwise, because in the process we kill both body and soul, as well as important relationships like families, friends, co-workers and the church. Now, there’s no harm in wanting to better our circumstances, but that must not be our sole reason for living. That’s why Bruh Paul advises us to be contented with what we have.
As he further says: ‘But they that will (desire to) be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful (harmful) lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition (ruin and destruction). For the LOVE of money is the root of all (kinds) of evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.’ (1 Tim. 6:9-10) Yes my fellow believers, that’s what the ambition to be rich can do to you. The LOVE of money is a source from which all kinds of evil can flow. And it’s not the only source of evil, but it certainly can happen when your goal in life is to strive after as much money as you can acquire.
And what’s the antidote to that evil LOVE for money? It’s as the scholars say found in verse 11. ‘But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, LOVE, patience, meekness.’ (1 Tim. 6:11) Now that’s the kind of life we believers ought to be seeking, not running down the lustful pleasures and riches of this world. And Bruh Paul adds another interesting verse that is supposed to stir up our blood and mission for Christ. ‘Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed (confessed) a good profession (confession) before many witnesses.’ (1 Tim. 6:12)
And to help us do that, we have our Thursday Blessings, undeserved blessings generously bestowed by the Lord for such purpose. So let’s declare and thus activate them right now nuh, because a blessing is not a blessing until it’s been spoken. As one strong and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline!
I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration, it now behooves us to go out and use those blessings to help others, just as generously as the Lord bestowed them on us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…money and material possessions are important…but seeking God should always be our first priority…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
24 Jun 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a learned behaviour, all these things shall be added unto you, allergies, Chrisitanity, complaining is a part of human nature, contentment is a learned behaviour, contentment isn't learned in classroom, contentment isn't learned overnight, drown men in destruction and perdition, endure to the end with Christ, erred from the faith, eyes fixed straight ahead, faith, fall into temptation, follow after righteousness, for one man who can stand prosperity, fraught with pitfalls, godliness, godliness with contentment is great gain, halfway home, hands on the plough, having food and raiment, holy spirit, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me, I have learned, I know both how to be abased, I know how to abound, in regard of need, in whatsoever state I am, into many foolish and hurtful lusts, Jesus Christ, keep God first place in our lives, let us be content, live humbly, live in prosperity, lose your soul, LOVE, make Jesus our number one priority, material possessions, meekness, mercy, Not that I speak in respect of want, not turning back, O man of God flee these things, our second wind day, our wonderful position in Christ Jesus, patience, pierced themselves through with many sorrows, practical everyday life experiences, relatively insignificant, ruin and destruction, salvation, seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, Sermon on the Mount, so glad to be alive, some in their greediness, strayed from the faith, thank God, the basic necessities of life, the BIBLE, the breath of life is still flowing through me, the constant noise of lawn mowers, the Lord hates pride and boasting, the LOVE of money, the root of all kinds of evil, the skill required for successful living, therewith to be content, they that desire to be rich, Thomas Carlyle, tighten the belt in lean times, to a glorious future with Jesus, to abound, to be full, to be hungry, to discipline oneself, to suffer need, truth, we brought nothing into this world, we can carry nothing out, wealthy Chrisitans don't boast about their wealth, Wednesday Wail, which some coveted after, wisdom, with the help of Jesus
Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 June 2026 Philippians 4:11.
Philippians 4:11. ‘Not that I speak in respect of want (in regard to need): for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.’
Ah friends, it’s Wednesday, our second wind day, and I surely wish that I could catch my second wind because my allergies are giving me some problems. We all long for the summer, but when it comes, we complain about allergies, the constant noise of lawn mowers and many other things. But I guess complaining is just a part of our human nature. (smile) And this current version of our society is exceptionally good at complaining, because very little seems to satisfy us.
We obviously have not taken Bruh Paul’s statement on the subject to heart. He wrote to the Philippians thus: ‘Not that I speak in respect of want (in regard to need): for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.’ (Phil. 4:11) Now that’s something this version of our society needs to learn, and we can only do that by following Bruh Paul’s example, as he continues: ‘I know both how to be abased (live humbly), and I know how to abound (live in prosperity): every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and suffer need.’ (Phil. 4:12)
And the scholars offer some very valuable thoughts on Bruh Paul’s statements. The most important being, that being contented is a learned behaviour. ‘I have learned … to be content: The Greek here suggests that contentment is a lesson learned neither in a classroom nor overnight, but through many practical experiences in life.’ And that’s the gospel truth! We cannot learn contentment over night or in a classroom, but only from practical everyday life experiences.
And per verse 12, the scholars declare: ‘By listing some specific examples, this verse elaborates upon the very general and broad “in whatsoever state I am” of verse 11. Be abased means literally to discipline oneself, that is, to tighten the belt in lean times. To abound means to live in prosperity. Everywhere and in all things I am instructed (or, “in all circumstances I have learned the secret of how”) to be full, that is “well-fed..” To abound means to have plenty. To suffer need means to go without. Paul has acquired the skill required for successful living with little and with much, the latter probably being harder. ’
And they end the explanation with an appropriate quote from the 19th century Sottish philosopher Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881). ‘For one man who can stand prosperity, there a hundred that will stand adversity.’ And most of us know that prosperity is fairly easy to live with, but adversity is a completely different kettle of tea. However to live a successful life, we need to be able to live in both camps without too many problems or complaints. But let’s note Bruh Paul’s next words in that passage, possibly the most important. ‘I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.’ (Phil. 4:13)
Now that’s the secret of the whole exercise. We learn to live successfully, either in prosperity or need, with the help of Jesus Christ, for He is the one that strengthens us, as we live in His will and do His work. So, if we don’t have that foundation of Christ in our souls, then most likely we’ll have trouble living a truly successful life.
And there are several other scriptures throughout the Bible which warn about contentment. Like this one from Bruh Paul to Timothy. ‘But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment (clothing) let us be therewith content. But they that will (desire to) be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful (harmful) lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition (in ruin and destruction). For the LOVE of money is the root of all (kinds of) evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, (for which some in their greediness have strayed from the faith), and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.’ (1 Tim. 6:6-10)
Oh friends, nobody really wants to live in poverty, but desperately trying to get rich is fraught with all sorts of pitfalls, all sorts of evil possibilities, wherewith you can lose your soul and cause yourself even more sorrows than if you were living in poverty. And once we have food and raiment or all the basic necessities of life, we ought to be content. Now let’s note that it’s not money that causes the problem, but the LOVE of it; the helpless desire to go after it, forsaking everything and everyone else to get it.
Thus Bruh Paul warns Timothy: ‘But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, LOVE, patience, meekness.’ (1 Tim. 6:11) Yes my fellow believers those are the things that should be uppermost in our minds and lives. Now please don’t think that material possessions have no place in the Christian’s life, but as we can carry nothing out at death, that makes them relatively insignificant in comparison to the things of verse 11 above.
And it’s like Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount when teaching about worry. ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:33) That tells us that if we sincerely keep God first place in our lives, He will satisfy all our basic needs. And He might also make us very wealthy in material terms; just like he made Cousin Sol wealthy, although he did not ask for it.
And believe me, there are lot of wealthy Christians out there in today’s world, and you’ll never know that just by seeing or listening to them, for they don’t boast on their earthly wealth, like so many non-believers do. They know on which side their bread is buttered, who gave them their wealth and how He hates pride and boasting, so they just go about quietly doing His work. And that’s how we all ought to be!
Now, let’s go home declaring our Wednesday Wail, letting the whole world know of our wonderful position in Christ Jesus. As one strong and sincere voice: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’
And for those who endure to the very end with Jesus, there’s an even more glorious future promised, that we cannot comprehend or imagine. So, let’s be wise and endure to the end with Jeus nuh, so that we can enjoy that more than glorious future together! Much LOVE!
…true contentment… can only be acquired…if Jesus is our number one priority…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
13 Apr 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a conviction in God's provision, a lifeline to all our needs, a powerful declaration of faith, all sinned and disobeyed your word, all these things shall be added unto you, before many witnesses, believed to see the goodness of God, concrete jungles, confessed a good confession, constantly rising prices, dance the dance of work, divine help, drown men in destruction and perdition, ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, erred from the faith, faith, faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers, fall into temptation, fight the good fight of faith, follow after righteousness, God should be our first love, God will never desert a righteous man, godliness, godliness with contentment is great gain, havng food and raiment, he delighteth in his way, he shall not be utterly cast down, his seed begging bread, holy spirit, hope in experiencing God's goodness on earth, humble ourselves and pray, humble servants, I had fainted, I have been young and now am old, in our greedy and selfish world, in the land of the living, indisputable truth, into many foolish and hurtful lusts, it all depends on hope faith and righteous living, it is certain we can carry nothing out, Jesus Christ, lay hold on eternal life, let us therewith be content, live the high life, LOVE, making money is not the end all and be all of life, meekness, mercy, money is no respecter of persons, money is not worth tearing asunder our lives and souls, money should not be our first love, no thought for family or self, not seen the righteous forsaken, O man of God flee these things, one more week of work, other high towers for scenery, patience, pierced themselves through with many sorrows, professed a good profession, rat race, ruin and destruction, running down the almighty dollar, salvation, seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, sincere repentance, sincerely seeking God's face, some in their greediness, thank you for life and strong faith in Christ, the gospel truth, the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want, the Lord upholds him with his hand, the LOVE of money, the many suffering from negative situations, the mass confusion in our world, the most important thing in life is seeking God, the necessities of life, the power to solve our many problems, the root of all kinds of evil, the steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, the throne of grace, the truth is played out everyday, the upright and trusting will not be abandoned, they that will be rich, though he fall, to alleviate our problems, toiling in high towers, truth, turn from our evil ways, using money to boost our ego and power, we brought nothing into this world, what we won't do for the almighty dollar, which some coveted after, wisdom, wise guidance and direction
1 Timothy 6:7. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
One more morning, one more day, one more week of work, heralded by our friend Monday. Yes my brethren, once again, it’s time to dance the dance of work, where we go back and forth to the concrete jungles, and spend our days toiling in high towers, with only other high towers as the surrounding scenery. But that’s okay; we can handle the rushing and pushing of the weekday rat race because the rewards enable us to have a somewhat better standard of living than a lot of the other denizens or inhabitants of our world.
What we won’t do for the almighty dollar eh! (smile) But unfortunately, in this society the dollar is mucho importante; for it’s our lifeline to everything we need and want. Without it, we can’t buy food, find shelter, afford transportation, clothes and several other necessities of life. And yes, we need to make a fair amount of money to live in a decent manner, especially in these times of constantly rising prices.
But let’s stop right here and make this most salient point: making money, accumulating the almighty dollar is not the end all and be all of this world! No sir! It might be very important, but it’s not supposed to be the most important thing in our lives. The most important thing in our lives ought to be seeking God. As Jesus so rightly puts it in the Sermon on the Mount: ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:34)
And that’s the gospel truth my people! When we seek Almighty God first, all our wants and needs are looked after. Remember these amazing words from Bruh David in Psalm 23: ‘The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want (shall not lack anything). (Ps. 23:1) And if Bruh David says it, then there must be a lot of truth to it, for he spent his whole life seeking God and though at times his life was very difficult, he lacked nothing, for the Lord took care of his needs.
Listen to how he corroborates that in Psalm 27. ‘I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.’ (Ps. 27:13) That means one needs to have hope in experiencing God’s goodness not only in the afterlife, but possibly more so in this earthly one. Yes friends, a lot of it depends on hope and faith and righteous living. For as Bruh David further states in Psalm 37: ‘I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed (descendants) begging bread.’ (Ps. 37:25)
And as this commentary tells us: ‘That’s a powerful declaration of faith, highlighting a conviction in God’s provision, suggesting that those who live uprightly and trust in Him will not be abandoned, nor will their descendants.’ And that’s the gospel truth. God will never desert a righteous man. As Bruh David says earlier on in Psalm 37: ‘The steps of a good man are ordered (established) by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand.’ (Ps. 37:23-24) More indisputable truth friends!
So, although we need money to live, and we need to work for it, it should not be our first LOVE. That ought to be God. Therefore, we ought not to spend most of our time trying to get or accumulate money. Sadly though, the world we live in judges you by the amount of money you possess, thus the misfortune where a lot of us are indeed running down the almighty dollar, accumulating it with no thought for self, family or nothing else, using it to boost our ego and power and live the high life.
But let’s remember one thing, money is no respecter of persons, and you must work hard to get it, but it flies away much easier than it comes. Thus, the wisdom of these words from Bruh Paul to Timothy. ‘But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment (clothing) let us be therewith content.
But they that will be rich (desire to be rich) fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful (harmful) lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition (ruin and destruction). For the LOVE of money is the root of all (kinds) of evil: which while some coveted after (for which some in their greediness), have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.’ (1 Tim. 6:6-10)
And though we see the truth of those words being played out every day in our greedy and selfish world, too many of us are still choosing to run down earthly wealth with all our might. When, as Bruh Paul continues to Timothy, this is how we ought to be living. ‘But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, LOVE, patience, meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed (confessed) a good profession (confession) before many witnesses.’ (1 Tim. 6:11-12)
And since it’s not easy to live that way in our current world, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, seeking divine help to do so. Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
And the Lord will certainly keep His promise, if we keep ours…that’s turn from our evil ways, and instead seek Him first and foremost! Much LOVE!
…money and earthly wealth are important…but are not worth…the tearing asunder of our lives and souls…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
16 Feb 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Spiritual Living
Tags: a divine means of showing, a lack of circumspection, a merciful forgiving and gracious God, ambition to be rich, be he a wise man or a fool, before many witnesses, confessed a good confession, contentment is a learned behaviour, controversial times, discontentment, divine aid, drown men in destruction and perdition, easily led astray, erred from the faith, exercise a modicum of circumspection, face the opening bell, faith, faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers, fall into a temptation and a snare, fall into ruin, fight the good fight of faith, fighting in the trenches of work, find fulfillment in material accomplishment, follow after righteousness, follow the things of God, futility, godliness, godliness with contentment is great gain, greed, Happy Family Day, have money as our life goal, have rule over all my labour, having food and raiment, holy spirit, humble ourselves, humble servants, I hated all the labour that I toiled for, I have learned, in whatever state I am to be content, into many foolish and hurtful lusts, it is certain we can carry nothing out, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, keep your promise to prosper us, lay hold on eternal life, leave it unto the man tat comes after me, leave the fruit of his work to another, let us therewith be content, LOVE, mass confusion in our world, material wealth is insignifcant, meekness, mercy, not satisfied with what we have, Not that I speak in respect of want, O man of God flee these things, of the many suffering from negative situations, pateince, pierced themselves through with many sorrows, please ease the pain, pray, professed a good profession, ruin and destruction, run down money, salvation, sense and sensibility fly out the window, showed myself wise under the sun, sincere repentance in our hearts, sincerely seek God's face, sinned and seriously disobeyed your word, some in their greediness, strayed from the faith, strong faith in Christ, thank you for life, the fruit of the spirit, the God who heals, the hands of wastrels, the love of money is the root of all evil, the race to accumulate wealth, they that will be rich, this also is vanity, too busy making money, truth, turn from our evil ways, undesired repercussions, want is never a problem, we brought nothing into this world, we lose something important, when contentment fill the soul, which some coveted after, wisdom, wise guidance to alleviate our problems
1 Timothy 6:6. But godliness with contentment is great gain.
HAPPY FAMILY DAY!
And this third Monday in February, Family Day, a public holiday in Canada, has opened somewhat damp and cloudy because of the slight increase of temperature over the freezing mark. But by mid-morning we’ve seen the sun come out and overshadow most of the clouds. Now some of us don’t’ have to go to work, today, because it’s a civic holiday not a Federal one, and thankfully that postpones our fighting in the trenches of work for an extra day. Glory to God! However, some of our work counterparts who fight in the Federal arenas must get out there and face the opening bell. We feel for them, but certainly don’t wish ourselves in their place. (smile)
Anyway, for those who are blessed to be off work, remember, that though partying is expected, we’re also expected not to overdo it, because we must go out and labour tomorrow, and any sick calls, tardiness or lethargy on the job, will probably reap undesired repercussions. Therefore, it’s in our best interest to exercise a modicum of circumspection in our partying today, so we don’t have to suffer for it tomorrow. (smile) End of Sermon!
Now let’s consider two topics that are very close to our hearts that’s a desire for material things and for money. And Bruh Paul sets it out very nicely in his first letter to his protégé Timothy, when he warns him. ‘But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment (clothing) let us therewith be content.’ (1 Tim. 6:6-8)
Now that’s some of the best advice we can ever get my people, for too many of us are not satisfied with what we have, even though we have a lot more than most. And Bruh Paul, in his letter to the Philippians, says of himself: ‘Not that I speak in respect of want (regard of need): for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.’ (Phil. 4:11) Yes friends, contentment is a learned behaviour.
And the scholars offer an interesting explanation for the statement, ‘And it is certain we can carry nothing out.’ They say: ‘Man enters the world at birth possessing nothing, in order to teach him that he will exit the world in the same manner – taking nothing with him. This is a divine means of showing man that since material wealth is relatively insignificant, he should pursue the things mentioned in verse 11.’ And those things we’ll get to later.
But unfortunately, too many of us don’t learn that lesson, and we foolishly continue to run down material wealth and do like Cousin Sol queries in Ecclesiastes, as he writes: ‘Yea, I hated all my labour which I had taken (toiled) under the sun: because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me. And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labour wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have showed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity (futility).’ (Eccl. 2:18-19)
And as the scholars tell us: ‘Part of the futility of trying to find fulfillment in material accomplishment is the fact that one must leave the fruit of his work to another who may well waste the accrued benefits.’ And that’s exactly what happens on many occasions. The departed person’s wealth falls into the hands of wastrels, and it’s quickly extinguished. Or it is fought over between friends and families, through the same discontentment and greed that Bruh Paul talks about.
Then again, so often, most of it is wasted in paying lawyers’ bills, and most of them end up getting much less than they would have, if with a shred of common sense and contentment, and less greed, they had sat down and worked it out sensibly. But it seems that when it comes to money and material wealth, all sense and sensibility fly out the window. That’s why Bruh Paul continues his serious warning to Timothy. ‘But they that will be (desire to be) rich fall into a temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful (harmful) lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition (ruin and destruction).’ (1 Tim. 6:9)
Yes my brethren, those whose ambition is to be rich are very easily led astray and eventually face ruin, simply because of their greed and a lack of circumspection in their race to accumulate wealth. And Bruh Paul reasons it thus: ‘For the LOVE of money is the root of all evil (all kinds of evil): which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith (for which some in their greediness have strayed from the faith) and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.’ (1 Tim. 6:10)
And friends, that’s ever so true, for we see it happening every day in our greedy, discontented society. When we run down money, have it as our goal of life, we usually lose something, like our souls, health, friends and /or families, because we don’t have the time to spend with them, for we are too busy making money.
Now, here’s an important distinction from the scholars; ‘The root of all evil means a root or source of all kinds of evil. The LOVE for money is not the only source from which evil comes.’ So please let’s get that straight. Evil comes from many other sources besides money. It’s just that when we LOVE money too much, it usually gets us into trouble.
And then Bruh Paul tells Timothy what he expects of him. ‘But thou, O man of God, flee these things, and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, LOVE, patience, meekness, (which just happen to be fruit of the Spirit). Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed (confessed) a good profession (confession) before many witnesses.’ (1 Tim. 6:11-12)
Oh my people, there’s no more for me to say, for Bruh Paul has laid it out very plainly for us all. It’s just for us now to follow his wisdom. And to help us do that, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning Battle hymn, seeking divine aid in these crucial 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!’
And that simply means, that if we desire to see divine aid, then we need to follow the things of God, and not the way of the world. So, let’s get together and do that nuh, because we desperately need divine aid in these very controversial times! Much LOVE!
…when contentment fills the soul…want is never a problem…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
02 Oct 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, a man's life does not consist of his possessions, a positive outlook on life, abundance, an appropriate lesson for these times, be content with what you have, be in the world not of the world, before many witnesses, beware of covetousness, Christians living like the world, clear direction for my life, confessed a good confession, courage, covet not thy neighbour's wife, covetous vultures, covetousness is not a Christian attribute, creativity, curse, divine protection, don't covet anything that is your neighbour's, drown men in destruction, eat drink and be merry, engaging in greed and envy, erred from their faith, even as I am not of the world, evil doers, faith, fall into temptation, favour, fight the good fight, flee these things, follow after righteousness, godliness, godliness with contentment is great gain, greedy and covetous times, hast professed a good profession, having food and raiment, high-priced lawyers, holy spirit, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee, in the name of Jesus, into many foolish and hurtful lusts, is not rich towards God, Jesus Christ, lay hold on eternal life, let us therewith be content, let your conduct be without covetousness, licentiousness, LOVE, maximization of earthly wealth, meekness, mercy, negative word, nice sunshiny weather, O man of God, our life's goal, patience, perdition, pierced themselves through with many sorrows, ruin and destruction, salvation, sanctify them through thy truth, self-control, self-discipline, set them apart, so is he that layeth up treasure for himself, some in their greediness, stop striving for material wealth, strayed from the faith, success, supernatural strength, supernatural wisdom, take heed, take thine ease, talent, the gospel truth, the Lord hath said, the LOVE of money, the parable of the Good Samaritan, the parable of the rich fool, the root of all kinds of evil, the Ten Commandments, the way of the world, they are not of the world, they that desire to be rich, this night thy soul shall be required of thee, thou hast much goods laid up for many years, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thy word is truth, truth, we brought nothing into this world, we can carry nothing out, which some coveted after, which thou hast provided, who is my neighbour, whose shall those things be, wisdom
Hebrews 13:5a. Let your conversation (conduct) be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have:
Ah friends, I can’t believe it’s already Thursday, the penultimate day of our workweek! The week has certainly passed quickly, and October seems to be giving us some nice sunshiny weather, though a tad on the cooler side. And we won’t complain, although complaining seems to be our lot these days. (smile) Now, as I was leafing through the Good Library, seeking something to write on, I came across this rather interesting and most appropriate lesson for these particular times.
It’s a verse from the author of Hebrews, which very conveniently, we only remember the last half, while seldom paying any attention to the first half. Why? Because the scripture admonishes and wisely advises us thus: ‘Let your conversation (conduct) be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he (the Lord) hath said , I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.’ (Heb. 13:5)
Yes my people, we tell ourselves that the last half of the verse is the gospel truth, but we completely ignore the first half, because that’s the way of the world in these greedy and covetous times, and too many of us supposed believers are living like the world, not like Christians. Remember what Jesus said when He prayed for the disciples, and consequently us? ‘They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them (set them apart) through thy truth: thy word is truth.’ (John 17:16-17)
Yes friends, we’re supposed to be in the world, but set aside from the world, and knowing God’s Word, which is the infallible truth, we’re not supposed to be behaving like the world. But unfortunately, too many of us are doing just that, engaging in the greed, envy and licentiousness that we’re supposed to resist and instead make public, so that the evil doers can see the light of Christ. And the sad part is that the admonishment against covetousness is not a new one, for it was framed from time immemorial in the Ten Commandments which the Lord gave to the Israelites and subsequently to those who professed belief in him and His Son Jesus Christ.
So, let’s cast our minds back to that august document, set out in Exodus 20. The last commandment of those ten, most explicitly warns: ‘Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s.’ (Ex. 20:17) Now, what about that don’t we understand eh?
And some of you trying to be smart might say, it only talks about our neighbour’s stuff. Well for your information, everybody around you, whether you live close to them or not, is your neighbour. Remember when the foolish lawyer who wanted to be seen, asked Jesus the same question, ‘Who is my neighbour?’ And Jesus then told him the parable of the Good Samaritan, showing his neighbour was anyone whom he came into contact with. (Luke 10: 28-37) So, don’t covet, means just that: don’t covet anything at all from anybody. Covetousness ought not to be an attribute of a believer in Christ Jesus.
And Jesus Himself warned us about covetousness, when someone asked him to talk to his brother about sharing their inheritance, ‘And he said unto him, Man, who made me a judge, or a divider (an arbitrator) over you? And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.’ (Luke 12:13-15) Then, as was His wont, to back up His statement, Jesus told them the parable of the rich fool. Where this man had so much stuff, he had nowhere to store them. So in his foolish, worldly wisdom decided to tear down all his storehouses and build bigger and better ones, so he could store all his 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 God 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 towards God.’ (Luke 12:19-21)
And we see that happening every day, where some person who has spent their entire lives building great material wealth, suddenly dies. And what becomes of their fortune eh? They surely cannot take it with them. No, it’s left behind for a lot of greedy, covetous vultures in human form to fight over it. And in the end, the people who benefit most are the high-priced lawyers they hire to fight for it! What godly justice for greed and covetousness.
And we can’t have a scriptural conversation on covetousness without these remarkable words of Bruh Paul to Timothy on the subject. He writes: ‘But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment (clothing) let us be therewith content. But they that will be (desire to be) rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful (harmful) lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition (ruin and destruction).
For the LOVE of money is the root of all kinds of evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from their faith (for which, some in their greediness have strayed from the faith), and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, LOVE, patience, meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed (confessed) a good profession (confession) before many witnesses.’ (1 Tim. 6:6-12)
Ah mih bredrin, Bruh Paul says it all right there! It’s high time we believers stop making the attainment of material wealth our life’s goal. There’s nothing wrong with having wealth, but living to create it is unwise. Especially since the Lord has blessed us with what we call our Thursday Blessings; so many undeserved blessings, to do our earthly work. So let’s declare and thus activate them right now nuh!
As one strong and sincere voice. ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!
I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’
And having activated those blessings, it now behooves us to go out and use them on behalf of others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…godliness with contentment…is what Christians should be seeking…not maximization of earthly wealth…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
10 May 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a caring and compassionate manner, a demanding mistress, Bible, bore us in the womb, divine help, erred from the faith, faith, Friday chant, God's omnipotent help, have rule over all my labour, heaven, introduce a new flock of believers, Jesus, Jesus Christ, lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, LOVE, material wealth, money, Mother's Day, our sinful world, restoring faith in you, return backsliders to your fold, rewards for faithful service, simmering unrest, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the accumulation of things, the LOVE of money, the root of all kinds of evil, the spiritual realm, thieves do not break through and steal, truth, wake up and smell the coffee, we brought nothing into this world, we can carry nothing out, where moth and rust doth corrupt, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, where thieves break through and steal, where your treasure is there will be your heart also, wine and dine, wisdom, Ye cannot serve God and mammon
Matthew 6:21. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be.
And though it’s a cloudy kind of a sunny day, we don’t care because we’ve gotten to shout, ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday! Yes friends, the weekend’s here, work’s done for another week and we’re joyful as we set out to celebrate another eventful Mother’s Day, where we’ll wine and dine those wonderful women who bore us in their wombs for nine tough months, and then showed us what LOVE and life are all about, as they raised us in a caring and compassionate manner. And that’s a good Bruh Paulian sentence! (smile)
Today, we’re going to talk about something near and very dear to all of our hearts; that’s treasure, material wealth of the world, which all of us need to live, but too many of us live to get, to accumulate it, and will do anything necessary to get it. However friends, that’s not a good way to live at all. For running down material wealth is fraught with all kinds of problems, some even life threatening. Remember Bruh Paul’s serious warning to Timothy? ‘For the LOVE of money is the root of all (kinds) of evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith (for which some in their greediness have strayed from the faith), and pierced themselves through with many sorrows (ruined themselves).’ (2 Tim. 6:10)
And that’s the gospel truth my people! When we run down money and all it’s inherent trials, we lose track of life, of our families, of ourselves, because the accumulation of money is a very demanding mistress. It can spoil everything around us, and even drive us from faith in God. And that’s the devil’s greatest hope. That’s why Jesus gave this very intentional warning: ‘Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt (ruin), and where thieves break through and steal:’ (Matt. 6:19)
Now we all know that to be true, because we hear and see it every day, where someone with lots of money is either defrauded out of it, or it’s physically stolen. And if your treasure happens to be in things like clothes, art, books or some mechanical device, then, with the passing of time, moth and rust will certainly attack them and thus drive down their value, or even make them completely worthless. So what’s the answer to that conundrum, that difficult problem of storing up our treasures?
Jesus answers it thus: ‘But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt (ruin), and where thieves do not break through nor steal.’ (Matt. 6:20) More gospel truth my people! For heaven is such a secure place where there’s no moth, rust nor thieves. No, none of those negative things exist in God’s, and our soon to be home. So it’s obviously the best place to lay up your treasures. Then Jesus makes this oh so important statement: ‘For where your treasure is, there will your heart be.’ (Matt. 6:21)
And there’s absolutely no doubt about that, for wherever your treasure is laid up there you will concentrate your focus. Thus, if you have an accumulation of earthly treasures, you will focus on them down here on earth more than on anything else. That means God will most likely not be an important aspect of your life. However, if your treasures are in heaven, in the spiritual realm, then there will your heart be also, and God will be the focus of your life. What Jesus is saying my brethren, is that the spiritual things of life are more important than the material things. And therefore one must concentrate on building up one’s spiritual maturity and life.
That brings up Bruh Paul’s words to Timothy shortly before he told him about the destruction the LOVE of money can cause. ‘For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.’ (2 Tim. 6:7) More indisputable truth, since we didn’t bring anything when we were born, and we certainly cannot carry all, or any of the material wealth we’ve accumulated here on earth. So why kill our selves to accumulate it eh? Only to leave it for others to enjoy and waste.
As Cousin Sol so wisely says in Ecclesiastes about leaving one’s wealth to others. ‘And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labour wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have shewed myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity (futility).’ (Eccl. 2:19) That’s another problem with leaving behind too much material possessions; people either waste it, or fight over it and the lawyers end up getting most of it. That’s why it’s so important to lay up treasures in heaven where you will be spending eternity.
And the scholars offer these explanations on the subject. ‘The attention of the believer is directed toward treasures in heaven. The term ‘treasures’ implies the addition or accumulation of things. The two kinds of treasures are conditioned by their place (either on earth or in heaven). The concept of laying up treasures in heaven is not pictured as one of meritorious benefits but rather of rewards for faithful service, as is illustrated elsewhere in the teaching of Jesus.’ And since treasures in heaven come from faithful service to God, that means we cannot both focus on earthly treasure and heavenly rewards at the same time. As Jesus puts it: ‘Ye cannot serve God and mammon (money, riches).’ (Matt. 6:25b)
More gospel truth! So we therefore have to decide which one we’re going to serve, and for all the reasons listed above, serving God is obviously the wisest decision. And to help us make that crucial decision today and stick to it, in light of all wiles and lies of the devil, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant, for divine help. Altogether now: ‘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 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 to get that divine aid rolling, as our prayer directs, we first need to show ourselves as true and faithful believers. Much LOVE!
…since earthly life is short and heavenly life lasts forever…wisdom dictates storing up more heavenly treasures than earthly ones…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
17 Jun 2023
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a crying shame, cheap imitations, Christ died for us, created us to have fellowship with Him, free will, getting to know the Father better, God commendeth his own love toward us, God sent not his Son into the world to condemn it, God so loved the world, have everlasting life, he gave his only begotten son, I am the good shepherd, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, increase my awareness of you today, it is certain we can carry nothing out, Jesus is the only true way, lazy-day Saturday, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, let my muscles relax, LOVE, materail wealth, monye, obeying God's word and will, only interested in what god can do for us, prideful arrogant, quiet my soul, slow my thoughts, stubborn, take some sacrifice, thank you for this tenderness, that I may know you all the more, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep, the world through him might be saved, there are always consequences to our deeds, we brought nothing into this world, while we were yet sinners, you can't be contained, your peace and love are present
John 3:16. For God so LOVED the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
And finally lazy-day Saturday has arrived! Yes. The day that many of us dream of, where we do absolutely nothing, or a little as possible. And it’s a beautiful though a tad cool day. But sadly, some of us only have so much lazy time at our disposal, and unfortunately, I’ve used up all of mine already, so now I’ve got to be about my father’s business. (smile) And with that in mind, let’s say our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer.
As one strong and sincere voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
Ah friends, what a beautiful prayer, and oh so appropriate to a day when we don’t have to do much of anything, where we can just relax and spend some worthwhile time with our wonderful heavenly Father, getting to know Him better, and who gets so much pleasure when we spend sincere time with Him. But that’s one of the reasons He created us, to have fellowship with Him, so why wouldn’t He be joyful when we do it out of a deep and abiding LOVE for Him.
The unfortunate thing though is that many of us are not really interested in God Himself, in enjoying who He is and what He stands for, but merely in what He can do for us. And is that ever a crying shame, for then we miss the true joy that can come from a tight and faithful union with our heavenly Father.
I guess it’s just like so many of us with our earthly father’s; we’re not particularly close, and we don’t really want to get close to them, we’re simply interested I how they can help us; provide a roof over our heads, food on the table and whatever else we need to go our merry way. And though that kind of relationship is never really beneficial to either side, sometimes it can be understandable by the way our human actions play out in this evil, ungodly and confused world, as some of our earthly fathers don’t care much for us either.
But our heavenly Father…why are we against Him? Why do we refuse to truly connect with Him eh? He’s never done us any wrong, and LOVES us with such a powerful LOVE that there’s no stronger LOVE in this whole wide world. And He’s made us so many wonderful promises if we just obey His Word and LOVE Him the way He desires us to. And even when we disobey and turn away from Him, His LOVE still persists, even to the point where the Bible says: ‘But God commnendeth (demonstrated) his (own) LOVE toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.’ (Rom. 5:8)
Wow! What a powerful LOVE that is, that instead of waiting for us sinners to come to Him and repent, God went ahead and made an easier way for us to come back to Him, where before there was no easy way. But yet still, with the free will He granted us, we chose to keep rebelling against Him, being prideful, arrogant and stubborn, believing that we know the world and all therein that He created, better than Him. But that’s such utter foolishness my people. We are allowing the enemy, the devil and his demonic cohorts to turn us against the One who’s prepared such a wonderful life for those who truly LOVE and obey him.
And the sad part is that the devil has nothing really to offer us but hellfire and damnation, for all he does is lie and deceive. But Jesus said: ‘I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.’ (John 10:11) And that’s exactly what He did: give His life so that our miserable sinful souls could be saved from eternal separation from our Creator. And what has the devil done for us eh? Nothing but steal and lie and deceive us. But yet still we refuse to turn to Jesus and run behind the foolishness the enemy tells us, like material wealth and money, which we cannot do anything with when we’re dead.
As Bruh Paul so wisely reminded Timothy. ‘For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.’ (1 Tim. 6:7) So why run down the things that the enemy and the world think are so important when all we do is leave it all behind for others to misuse and/or fight over.
For as the wisest and richest man who ever lived, Cousin Sol discovered in his search for wealth and wisdom says in Ecclesiastes. ‘Yea, I hated all my labour, which I had taken (toiled) under the sun: because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me. and who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have tule over all my labour wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have shewed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity (futility, useless).’ (Eccl. 2:18-19)
And that has a whole lot of truth in it. For we see it played out in the world every day, where some wealthy person who spent most of his life accumulating earthly riches only for it to be passed down after his death to complete wastrels and fools, who just use and abuse it until there’s nothing left, or to those who fight each other tooth and nail for some portion of it, and finally most of it ends up in the hands of lawyers and other officials as fees or whatever.
And the sad part is that if we so badly want material wealth the best place to get it from is God Almighty, who owns it all anyway, and gives it generously to those who LOVE and obey Him. The devil can never give you foolproof wealth, because he owns nothing. He’s just the biggest scam and fraud artist around. But we so desire the easy way out, that instead of obeying God’s word and will, which might take some sacrifice, we fall for the enemies lies and deceptions.
Oh friends, please realize that like us, Satan is one of God’s creations, who in foolish pride and arrogance tried to overthrow God and got kicked out of heaven to walk the earth in grief and shame, and be eventually destroyed in the lake of fire So why do we insist on following him eh when he has absolutely nothing of value to offer, only fake baubles and bangles, that look nice but are just cheap imitations of the real McCoy that God has to offer?
And I can’t think of a better scripture to close with today, than this monumental one. ‘For God so LOVED the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.’ (John 3:16-17)
Now therein lies the truth of it all my people, and it’s up to us to believe it or not. But please remember that there are consequences, either good or bad to each side of the equation. Much LOVE!
…you follow the enemies lies and deceptions…to your own travail…for Jesus is the way…the ONLY true way…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
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