13 Mar 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a decent lifestyle, aura of love, bright and early, calm, carnal, chutzpah, confidence, conquerors, Creator of the universe, distresses, do business, dreaded day, eat, enthusiasm, Ethan the Ezrahite, friends, fun, generous help, glorious kingdom, God's mighty wings, God's wonderful works, He maketh the storm a calm, hit the road, holy spirit, hope, humble servants, improved result, inroads, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy, licentious, lies, like a drunken man, lord god almighty, LOVE, lustful, mercy, mistake, Monday Morniing Battle Hymn, perky, Praise the Lord, protection, rage, raucous, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, safety, sailor, salvation, spiritual armour, stagger, steadfast faith, storm, storms of life, taunts, the children of men, the helm, the infidel, the only God there is, the stormy wind, the waves are still, the workingman, trials, tribulations, trust, truth, ungodly world, verve, weekend, wiles, wisdom, wit's end, work
Psalm 107:29. He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.
And then it was Monday; that dreaded day of the workingman! But as we keep saying friends, if you want to eat, then you have to work. And if you want to work without too many problems, then you have to live a decent lifestyle.
You can’t expect to be carnal and licentious and lustful all weekend, then get up bright and early and perky on Monday morning and head out. But many of us still do it, somehow expecting to make the same mistake and see an improved result. Sorry friends, it just doesn’t happen that way.
But we have some help for you; it’s called our Monday Morning Battle Hymn. It wakes you up, rejuvenates you, and gets you ready to hit the road, refreshed and energetic. So let’s sing it now nuh, with plenty enthusiasm and verve and chutzpah and all those other good things which enhance a song.
In strong voice and perfect harmony: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Now that was good friends; a li’l bit raucous and rough, but certainly not lacking in enthusiasm! And most importantly, it brought a chuckle to Jesus, our choirmaster’s spirit. He appreciated the energy we put into it. So now we’re ready to go out and do battle with the infidel in Jesus’ name, because it’s only in His name are we ever going to be victorious!
And today my brethren, we have a very interesting, truthful and awesome Bit, but before we get to it, let’s hear it in context. It comes from Psalm 107 – God’s wonderful works to the children of men.
The psalmist writes: They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in the great waters; These see the works of the Lord, and his wonders in the deep. For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof. They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble.
They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wit’s end. Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses. He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still. Then they are glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired heaven.’ (Ps.107:23-30)
Oh friends, what an omnipotent but merciful and magnanimous God we serve and worship! He has power to cause storms both on the seas and also in our lives, but He also has the awesome power to still, to calm those same raging storms!
The important thing to note is that when the storms rage around us, and we stagger and reel like drunks, we need to call out to Him for help and mercy. And you’ll notice that’s exactly what we’ve done in our opening this morning.
We’re faced by a storm of not wanting to get up to go to work, but we know we have to, so we cried out to Him in our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, and He mercifully gave us the grace and strength to go out and do His will. How awesome is that eh my people?
There’s NO OTHER GOD LIKE OURS! In fact our GOD, IS THE ONLY GOD THERE IS! Matter fix! (smile)
So please, let’s not allow the storms, the trials and tribulations of life to get us down, or rather keep us down, for we have the most powerful Being in the universe as our God to turn to, and He has faithfully promised never to leave nor forsake us, once we stay under the protection and safety of His mighty wings.
And if you don’t believe me, listen to Ethan the Ezrahite, as he talks about God’s sure promises to David from Psalm 89. ‘O Lord God of hosts, who is a strong Lord like unto thee? or to thy faithfulness round about thee? Thou rulest the raging of the sea: when the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them.’ (Ps.89:8-9)
Yes my brethren, the universe is the Lord’s and all therein! Let us never forget that and like true and wise believers, act accordingly during the storms of life that we all must face. Much LOVE!
…when storms rage…let Jesus take the helm…for He is the best sailor there is…
10 Mar 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a sad state, abyss, advantage, another week of work, answer for his own deeds, appetites, at any time, be prepared, begrudgingly, believer, benefits, blame, by the scruff of the neck, cares of this life, carousing, choice, cold white stuff, come to pass, condemnation, deny Christ, disciples, drunkenness, emotionally, employee, employer, enthusiasm, excessively, fellowship, fight, foolish virgins, Friday chant, fun, generous help, glorious kingdom, God's universe, good paying, Hades, hard labour, in Jesus' name, indulge, infighting, Jesus, jobs, judgement day, lies, like a thief in the night, oil in their lamps, permanent jobs, physically, poorly paid, potent, power struggles, powerful force, pray, prayer, punching a clock, rational, readiness, relaxation, rest, rights, sense of purpose, sensible approach, signs, simple, slackness, small pay, snare, stand before, straightforward, surfeiting, take heed, taunts, temporary jobs, temptation, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, the day of the Lord, the face of the earth, the second coming, the Son of man, the Thessalonians, the weekend, the working world, the workingman, thief, trials, unawares, under pressure, valour, warns, watch, weighed down, wiles, winter, wisdom, your hearts be overcharged
Luke 21:34. And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged (weighed down) with surfeiting (carousing), and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.
So friends, like we gone back to winter now, with highs in the minus bracket and promises of that fluffy, but everlastingly cold white stuff! (smile) But that doesn’t matter as much to the workingman as the fact that it’s Friday, glorious Friday!
And he just goes about his merry way rejoicing, while loudly mouthing: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday! Thank God is Friday and the weekend here at last! No more hard labour for small pay! No more punching a stupid clock! The next whole two days is mine, to do as I please! Oh, thank God for Fridays and the weekend yes!’
And who can really blame him eh, since the working world out there is such a sad state; transitioning from good paying permanent jobs with benefits, to poorly paid temporary jobs with no benefits.
The modern day employer has the employee by the scruff of his neck as it were, with little choice but to accept whatever he begrudgingly hands out. Like we’re going back to the bad old days of employer advantage, where workers had to fight, both physically and emotionally for their rights.
But be that as it may, that excessive, overly emotional reaction is not the best, especially in these lean, rough and tough times. Our Friday Chant provides a much more rational and sensible approach. So let’s chant it out now nuh, with just as much enthusiasm and sense of purpose, as the workingman did his song.
Altogether now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Yes my fellow believers, that is the kind of response we need to have towards our two days off on the weekend, otherwise we’d just keep digging ourselves further down into the abyss of Hades every week.
And my people, our God is wonderful in His awesome and mysterious ways, that He pointed out a most fitting Bit for us today.
‘And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged (weighed down) with surfeiting (carousing), and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.’
I just had to chuckle when I was led to it, because it defines our weekends so well. Jesus was here talking to His disciples about some of the signs of His Second Coming, warning them to be prepared, to not be deceived by the wiles and taunts and lies of the world.
The scholars add this explanation about our Bit. ‘21:34. Surfeiting means “to indulge one’s appetites excessively.” No believer is beyond the temptation to fall into sin. Jesus warns against slackness and lack of daily readiness in the Christian walk.’
In other words my brethren, we have to be always ready, daily prepared to walk the good daily walk, as well as be prepared for Jesus’ Second Coming, which can happen at anytime.
And Jesus continues His warning after our Bit. ‘For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.’ (Luke 21:35-36)
Ah friends, I couldn’t put it any simpler or more straightforward than that! That’s one thing about Jesus; His words are always simple and straightforward. And here He purposely warned us: WATCH and PRAY!
Consequently, I can’t understand how there’s not much more watching and praying amongst the brethren, instead of the infighting and power struggles, which currently manifest themselves to a large degree in the Lord’s church.
But yuh know what? Each man will have to answer for his own deeds come the judgement day, and then we won’t be able to say we didn’t know, or point the blame at someone else. It will all fall squarely on our shoulders. So the wisest move for all of us right now, is to get prepared, and stay prepared!
And we’ll close with this explanation re verse 36, by the scholars. ’21:36. Prayer is the better part of valour when persevering for Christ under pressure. Prayer alone will enable one to stand before the returning Son of Man, when those all around are falling, whether in condemnation before Christ or to temptation to deny Christ under the trials of the hour.’
There’s no more left to be said my friends! So please let’s begin seriously watching and praying nuh, for remember what Bruh Paul said to the Thessalonians: ‘For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.’ (1 Thess.5:2)
So let’s be prepared for when Jesus comes. Let’s not be like the five foolish virgins who ran out of oil when the bridegroom came, because they were not prepared. (Matt.25:1-13). Let godly wisdom reign amongst us my breddren! Much LOVE!
…PRAYER…the most potent and powerful force in God’s universe…
09 Mar 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, all or nothing at all, allegiance, anger, anxiety, at the helm, batting an eyelash, better off, blanketing our world, bless others, blessed, bring us out safely, broken, challenge, consequences, contentment, creativity, curse, day of temptation, disgusted, divine protection, enter into my rest, err, family, favour, foolishness of men, forty years, friends, go astray, God is working for our good, grieved, halfway measures, harden not your heart, health, I was glad, if ye will hear his voice, in my wrath, in the name of Jesus, in the wilderness, Jesus Christ, joy, let us go into the house of the Lord, let us kneel before the Lord, LOVE, negative emotions, negative word, o come let us worship and bow down, our Lord and Saviour, our Maker, our souls, pain, Paradise, peace, promotion, prosper, provocation, rebellion, resentment, saw my work, self-control, self-discipline, stress, succeed, success, supernatural, surrender, the existence of God, the fool hath said in his heart, the Lord's strength, the people of his pasture, the sheep of his hand, there is no god, Thursday Blessings, trials, tribulations, trust, unbelievers, wisdom
Psalm 95:6. O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker.
Ah well mih people, it’s another beautiful day in paradise…
And some of you look at me as though I’m crazy. Paradise, you ask? Can this world ever be paradise? Why not eh? It was once before, why can’t it be so again eh?
For our information friends, with our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ at the helm anywhere can be paradise! In fact wherever He is, it’s paradise! And the mere fact that He dwells within us, makes our souls paradise.
What does paradise mean eh? In this context, simply joy and peace and contentment at a level that keeps away anxiety, stress, resentment, anger and all the many other negative emotions that are currently blanketing our world.
It’s the peace that passes all understanding, the joy that comes from the Lord’s strength, and the ability to go through trials and tribulations without batting an eyelash. (smile)
Oh we do feel the pain and other negative stuff, but it does not affect us the way it does unbelievers. We know that our wonderful God will bring us out safely, and better off too, on the other side.
That’s what we have over unbelievers; the knowledge that our magnificent and magnanimous God is working everything out for out good. And once we surrender our souls to Him, place our sincere trust in Him, we can ride out any storm, for He is always there to lead and guide us.
But therein lies the rub; mankind does not easily trust and surrender, especially to an invisible, non-physical Being. And even some of those who do submit to Almighty God, don’t submit everything, they keep some stuff back for them to control.
But friends, our God does not delight in halfway or partway measures. He wants it ALL or NOTHING at all! And unfortunately too many of us refuse to give it all up to Him. Some have even gone as far as to challenge the existence of God.
As Bruh David claims in Psalms 14 and 53 – The foolishness of men. ‘The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God…’ (Ps.14, 53:1)
But friends, I’m here to tell us an entirely different story. I’m here to invite us to do as our Bit says: ‘O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker.’
My brethren, that is one of the best invitations you can ever receive! No wonder Bruh David solemnly declared in Psalm 122: ‘I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord.’ (Ps.122:1)
And why is it so great and important to bow down and worship Almighty God eh? Listen up closely: ‘For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand (under His care).’ (Ps.95:7a)
What better reason can there be eh friends? The Most High God Jehovah is our Maker, Our God, Our Controller and our Provider. So whom else should we pay allegiance to eh? NO ONE! That is if we are wise.
And the psalmist continues with these words of wisdom. ‘Today if ye will hear his voice, Harden not your heart, as in the provocation (rebellion), and as in the day of temptation (trial, testing) in the wilderness: When your fathers tempted (tried) me, proved me, and saw my work.’ (Ps.95:7b-9)
Yeh friends, the Israelites tested and tried the Lord’s patience in the wilderness after He had so graciously and mercifully brought them out of four hundred years of bondage in Egypt.
And as the psalmist continues: ‘Forty years long was I grieved (I was disgusted) with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err (go astray) in their heart, and they have not known my ways: Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest.’ (Ps.95:10-11)
Oh my people there is no better example of rebellion against Almighty God and the consequences that follow than the Israelites journey through the wilderness! Because they refused to obey His commandments they wandered for forty years until all those who had come out of Egypt died. None of them entered the Promised Land except Joshua and Caleb.
So friends, regardless of what mankind says, there is a God, a mighty One too! And if we don’t obey His dictates, we are going to pay some serious consequences, just like the Israelites.
So with those wise words of warning, let’s go home declaring our Thursday Blessings. And please remember that a blessing is not a blessing until it has been spoken over someone.
In full voice now: ‘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 everyday! Amen!’
Now if you believe it all, let’s go out and bless others! Much LOVE!
…if Jesus calls today…please answer respectfully…and listen wisely…
08 Mar 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future with Jesus, action, associate with Jesus, be of good cheer, bondage, chains, circumstantial happening, commitment, conscience, dying on our behalf, ephemeral, fickle, frail, frees us from fear, glory hallelujah, halfway home, happiness, held us captive, higher than your thoughts, Holy Triumvirate, i have overcome the world, intimate association with Jesus, Isaiah, Israelites, Jesus Christ, joy, keep your hearts and minds, last a lifetime, let it be afraid, let not your heart be troubled, LOVE, Lucifer, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, my hands are on the plough, not as the world giveth, not looking back, ole crook, overcome, peace, Philippians, Praise the Lord, promises, relationship, sacrificial work, selfless love, setting us free, sincerity, sins, source of happiness, thanks and praise, the breath of life, the coming of Jesus, the first born Son, the Good Book, the joy of the Lord, the Lamb that was slain, the norm, the nrothern climes, the peace of God, them's the breaks, thoughts, through Christ Jesus, tranquility, tribulation, truth, ways, Wednesday Wail, which passeth all understanding, wicked world, wisdom, worry
Philippians 4:7. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep (guard) your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
And then it was Wednesday; a bright and sunshiny day in my area, though not as warm as yesterday. But I’ll gladly take it! Anytime the weather is above freezing in the beginning of March, and I’m in the northern climes, then I’m happy.
But that’s not the true source of my happiness, and I hope that something as ephemeral as the weather is not your source of happiness either.
You know what? I don’t like the term happiness in this context, because it smacks of a circumstantial happening, something that doesn’t last long, and what I have is hopefully going to last a lifetime; that’s joy in my soul because of my close and intimate association with Jesus Christ!
And all God’s people declared a loud, proud and grateful, ‘Praise the Lord! Glory Hallelujah! Give Almighty God thanks and praise for the sacrificial work, the selfless LOVE of Jesus, the wonderful act of dying on our behalf, of taking our sins upon His conscience and setting us free from the most undesirable bondage of sin, and the shameful, ridiculous chains that the ole crook Lucifer held us captive in! Glory Hallelujah for the Lamb that was slain for us!’
Ah friends, it’s so sad that so much of our world doesn’t know the joy that comes from having a safe, sound, secure and intimate relationship with Jesus Christ, the first-born Son of the Lord God Jehovah. For it’s only through such a relationship can they ever hope to have true peace and joy in their hearts, bodies, souls and minds.
What did Jesus have to say about that? ‘Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.’ (John 14:27)
And again He told the disciples: ‘These things have I spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33)
Now in the natural, that might seem impossible. How can one have peace in a world full of trials and tribulations eh? But the kind of peace we’re talking about is the kind that Bruh Paul wrote to the Philippians about in our Bit:
‘And the peace of God which passeth all understanding shall keep (guard) your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.’
Ah my fellow believers, that is the kind of peace we receive, the tranquility that frees us from fear and worry, when we associate with Jesus; the peace of God that passes all human understanding! Glory Be!
Remember what Isaiah said to the Israelites on the Lord’s behalf? ‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.’ (Is.55:8-9)
It’s a divine peace bestowed on us by our Higher Power. And isn’t that beautiful friends? It surely is! Having an intimate Being who’s mentality and everything else is greater and better than our frail and fickle self lends us so much confidence, so much assurance that we can rely on Him to look after us in all situations. Wow!
And that’s what brings us joy! Yeah mih people, JOY is the word I’ve been seeking all along! Why? Because that gives the impression of something other than just a circumstantial happening that’s bringing light and LOVE into my life.
It’s a longer lasting expression of contentment and satisfaction. And besides, the Good Book tells us; ‘for the joy of the Lord is your strength.’ (Neh.8:10)
Yes friends, when we have the Lord living in and through us, we not only have joy, but a peace that passes all understanding, which in turn helps us to deal successfully with all the trials and tribulations that we encounter in this wild and wicked world.
And that’s why Jesus could have told us to be of good cheer, for He has already conquered the world.
Now, armed with all that wonderful stuff, all God’s glorious promises, most of them fulfilled by the coming of Jesus, why would I want to associate with anyone else but Him eh? No way Jose!
That brings us to our Wednesday Wail, where we reemphasize our commitment to the Holy Triumvirate that directs our lives. So let’s belt it out with all sincerity and truth nuh, as is our wont.
As one now: ‘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 having said all that, and believing it too, let’s go out and put it into action by living the way Jesus desires of us nuh, for therein is eternal wisdom. Much LOVE!
…only in sure communion with Jesus…can we live with sure contentment here on earth…
P.S. Please excuse the lateness, but as usual my sleeping and waking hours don’t seem to fall within the norm, as a friend told me on the phone some fifteen minutes ago. (smile) But them’s the breaks! Much LOVE!
07 Mar 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: abundance, Adam and Eve, be as God, beginning of time, consequences, disobeyed God, divination, eternal life, evil, fall of man, forbidden fruit, freely eat, friend, good, good for food, greed, Hananiah, heaven, idolatry, iniquity, Jeremiah, Jesus, leave all the consequences to Him, listening to God, little, LOVE, lust, make one wise, obey God, Paradise, promise, rebel against God, rebellion, rebellious, rush hour traffic, salvation, Samuel, Satan, Saul, share His love, stranded, stubborn, stubbornness, surely die, taught rebellion, the beloved of God, the friend of Jesus, the knowledge of good and evil, the serpent, the sin of witchcraft, things of the world, trust a lie, Tuesday Mantra, what peopel say about me, wisdom, your eyes shall be opened
1 Samuel 15:23. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft (divination), and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry…
‘Rebellion! Rebellion! Rebellion!’ That’s the pattern of behaviour currently taking place in our world friends. Man is rebelling against both God and man. You see it clearly in all our relationships. Nobody wants to follow the tried and true order, we all want to do our own thing, which is only causing us more problems than ever.
Even the weather is rebelling. Today in my area, in the first week of March it’s going to be something like 11 degrees Celsius. Hn! That’s certainly not a norm. Last year when I came back from Tobago around this time it was something like minus 7.
And I’m saying all of that just to make an excuse for the Bit being so late: my body rebelled against me this morning and refused to get up at a decent hour. (smile)
Yeh friends, the ole bod just slept right through the waking up hour! But to a certain extent I can’t give it wrong, for it spent almost two hours yesterday afternoon locked up in a cramped car in the rush hour traffic trying to get home.
Ah Lord eh! I don’t know how some people do it day in and day out nuh. Having waited an hour to see the doctor, I left the parking garage in the big city around thee thirty, but did not get home until five fifteen. I could possibly have walked home quicker.
And it’s a good thing I decided to stop for gas too, because at that rate I would have ended up stranded on the highway. So now you know why the Bit is this late. (smile)
And since we began by talking about rebellion, I thought it only fitting to continue the topic in our Bit, because it really is a big problem in our society, in fact has been since day one.
‘For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft (divination), and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry…’
Yes my fellow believers, we all know those words as coming from the prophet Samuel to Saul, the first king of Israel, when he disobeyed God and thus lost his kingship. Rebellion against the Lord God Jehovah is indeed a very foolish thing to do, for there will always be serious consequences to pay at some time or the other.
Listen to this incident from Jeremiah, where he talks to the supposed prophet Hananiah. ‘Then said the prophet Jeremiah unto Hananiah the prophet, Hear now, Hananiah; the Lord hath not sent thee; but thou makest this people to trust in a lie.
Therefore thus saith the Lord; Behold, I will cast thee from off the face of the earth: this year thou shalt die, because thou hast taught rebellion against the Lord. So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh month.’ (Jer.28:15-17)
Yuh see friends, it’s not only those who actually rebel against God that meet a sad end, but also those who teach rebellion against God. And from the beginning of time, we have been paying for the most foolish rebellion ever: that of our forefathers Adam and Eve not listening to God and eating of the forbidden fruit.
‘And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.’ (Gen.2:16-17)
Oh my people, what’s so difficult to understand about that eh? You have oodles of fruit to eat in a paradise, where all you have to do is tend the garden and enjoy and exotic life. But no, mankind is so stubborn and rebellious and foolish that Eve allowed the serpent to trick her into eating the forbidden fruit.
In response to his question about what fruit they should or should not eat, Eve replied. ‘But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods (as God), knowing good and evil.
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes (a desirable thing), and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.’ (Gen.3:3-6)
And thus occurred the sad and foolish fall of man! Adam and Eve never considered the abundance they had, but the little they did not have. And Satan uses that same trick on us even unto today, emphasizing the little we don’t have. And we still fall for it, through our lust and greed, consequently ignoring the abundance that we have been blessed with.
Ah friends, please don’t allow the foolish things of the world to make us rebel against our Creator. He has given us all that we can ever need down here on earth, plus the promise of salvation and eternal life with Him in heaven.
Please, please, let’s not throw it away, like our forefathers did, for some simple earthly pleasure or possession that’s not worth anything. Otherwise we’ll lose all the wonderful blessings of God, like they did.
Now let’s go home declaring our Tuesday Mantra in all sincerity and truth. ‘I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
Yes friends, let’s remember who we are and go out and behave in a suitable manner nuh, for that is wisdom untold. Much LOVE!
…the best advice…obey God…and leave all the consequences to Him… (Uncle Charles – Charles Stanley)
06 Mar 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a roof over our heads, abundant life, aches and pains, aura of love, backbone, battle, belly, buckler, confidence, consequences, deliverance, enemy, enthusiasm, faithfulness, fortress, friends, get a move on, groaning, hemming and hawing, hope, humble servants, I am helped, invincible, Jesus Christ, jobs, joy, lies, LOVE, loving kindness, moaning, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, my heart greatly rejoiceth, my heart trusted in him, my shield, placing all our eggs in one basket, pussyfooting, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, Rock, salvation, scared to stand up, shield, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, taunts, The Lord is my strength, three squares, tiredness, trust, truth, ungodly world, wiles, will I praise him, wisdom, with my song
Psalm 28:7. The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.
Ah well friends, another Monday is upon us, and we don’t have much choice but to get up and go to work – that is provided we want to continue having a roof over our heads and eating three squares a day. (smile) So let’s just stop the pussyfooting, the hemming and hawing, the moaning and groaning about our aches and pains and tiredness and just get up and get a move on nuh.
And as always, we have the antidote for your Monday morning discomfort; it’s called the Monday Morning Battle Hymn. So let’s sing it out now as one purposeful earthly choir, in loud voice, believing all that we sing.
‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Good show friends, good show! Jesus, our choirmaster wasn’t ecstatic, but neither was He displeased, and that says a lot. So let’s take all the adrenaline that’s now flowing through our bodies and go out and put it to good use, put it into action on Jesus’ behalf as He desires of us.
And we have the perfect Bit to go along with our Monday trials: ‘The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.’ Words of indisputable truth from Bruh David my brethren!
And if we are true believers, then those words ought to aptly describe us and our actions! And there is no better time than this Monday morning to show the world our true colours!
What I like about our Bit too, is that it’s so logical: If the Lord is my strength and shield, then I will obviously put a whole lot of trust in Him. Mama Mia! Consequently He will help me, and the logical conclusion to all that is I’ll be happy and rejoice and sing praises to His holy name for His faithfulness and LOVING-kindness towards me. Glory Hallelujah!
Yes friends, they tell us not to put all our eggs in one basket, but where the Lord God Jehovah is concerned, we can NEVER go wrong by placing all our eggs in the single basket that His LOVE and caring represents!
And if you don’t believe me, then listen to Bruh David again, this time from Psalm 18 – Thanksgiving for deliverance. He boldly proclaims on opening: ‘I will LOVE thee, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God; my strength (rock), in whom I will trust; my buckler (shield), and the horn (strength) of my salvation, and my high tower (stronghold). I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.’ (Ps.18:1-3)
What strong language, what strong faith my people! Do we have that kind of faith and trust? I surely do hope so, otherwise we are certainly losing out on the Lord’s goodness. And Bruh David wasn’t afraid to declare His feelings to all and sundry. The million dollar question now is whether we have the parts, the backbone and belly to do the same?
Oh I know that some of us have it, but too many of us don’t. We are still scared to stand up and acknowledge Jesus as the overwhelming force in our lives. But my fellow believers, until and unless we can courageously stand up amongst the heathen and declare our LOVE for Jesus, regardless of the consequences, our lives will never amount to much, or be all that they can be.
The heathen isn’t afraid to stand up and preach Lucifer, so why should we be afraid to preach Jesus, who has already defeated Lucifer? Our reluctance and fear to lift up Jesus is just making the enemy stronger my people. And is that what we want to do? I’m sure all of us would give out with a deafening ‘NO!’ But it’s not what our actions are showing.
Now let’s end with some more words of Bruh David that address the above question, from Psalm 56 – A confident prayer for help. He wrote this when the Philistines took him in Gath. ‘What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.’ (Ps.56:3-4)
What more can I say eh my people? Not a whole lot. We all know Bruh David’s story, and though it was not all wine, song and roses, it was a very rich and abundant life, both physically and spiritually. And it would be difficult to find a better spiritual mentor than Him – besides Jesus of course. So since we all know what we ought to do to lift up Jesus, let’s do it nuh. Much LOVE!
…stand up, stand up for Jesus…the trumpet call obey…till every foe is vanquished…and Christ is Lord indeed…
05 Mar 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a person of excellence, a shield, all the day long, another one bites the dust, as for me and minse, be joyful in thee, believers, bless, bless the righteous, blessed assurance, blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, bondage, born of his spirit, cancer, caring, celebrate life, chains of fear, compassion, confidence, delight, ever-faithful, excellence, favour, free from fear, glory divine, God's Word, goodness, heaven, heir of salvation, hope, Jesus' comforting arms, joy, leukemia, looking above, lost in his love, LOVE, loved life, next life, praising my saviour, promises, purchase of God, rapture, rejoice, reluctant to believe, reneges, resting in peace, sacrifice of praise, salvation, scourge of humanity, shout for joy, submission, take it in stride, the righteous, this is my song, this is my story, thou good and faithful servant, trust, trustin God, visions of rapture, waiting, washed in his blood, watching, we will follow the Lord, whose hope is the Lord, wisdom
Jeremiah 17:7. Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is.
‘And another one bites the dust!’ Yes my brethren, another friend of mine has been smitten by that unrelenting scourge of humanity, cancer – the leukemia strain. Ah Lord eh! Will it ever end? Perhaps not, so we need to take it in stride. For about two years she courageously battled the disease, but all to no avail. I guess God just had other plans for her.
We celebrated her life yesterday with a most hearty goodbye. Everyone said she would have been most impressed by it, because she LOVED life, and always gave of her best in all aspects. That was the overwhelming sentiment; Lovine was a person of excellence! And I’m sure Jesus held His arms wide open to her, as He joyfully declared: ‘Welcome home, Crescent Lovine Vernon-Micaleff, thou good and faithful servant!’
And though it will be hard on the family and friends who are still here, we all know that she is resting in peace in the comforting arms of Jesus, smiling down at us, telling us not to worry, that eventually we will meet again. And we all know that, so though she may not be here physically with us, her spirit will always remain in our hearts.
And in her honour today, we will open our praise and worship with one of the last songs she asked her family to sing with her before she passed away – the wonderful hymn of praise and trust ‘Blessed Assurance.’
So friends, let’s rock heaven with the sacrifice of praise of our lips as we sing: ‘Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine! Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine! Heir of salvation, purchase of God, Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood. (Refrain): This is my story, this is my song, Praising my Savior all the day long; This is my story, this is my song, Praising my Savior all the day long.
Perfect submission, perfect delight, Visions of rapture now burst on my sight; Angels, descending, bring from above Echoes of mercy, whispers of love. (Refrain): Perfect submission, all is at rest, I in my Savior am happy and blest, Watching and waiting, looking above, Filled with His goodness, lost in His love. (Refrain) This is my story, this is my song, Praising my Savior all the day long; This is my story, this is my song, Praising my Savior all the day long.’
Ah mih people, all heaven was touched by our heartfelt rendition! And yuh know what? The only way to be able to truly believe and enjoy those sentiments contained in the hymn is by doing what our Bit advises. ‘Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is.’
Yeh friends, we can only have that joy and confidence in His LOVE and caring and compassion and meeting Him in heaven in the next life to live forever, when we totally believe, trust and hope in Him and His Word! That’s why I can’t understand why so many people today are running away from God, instead of towards Him, for He is the ONLY ONE who can save us from both ourselves and the evil world around us!
The only thing that can break the chains of fear which keep us in bondage is total trust in the Lord God Almighty, not partial! And until mankind recognizes and acknowledges that, we’ll just keep sinking further down in the mire of evil in which we’re currently immersed. End of sermon! (smile)
Now let’s check out some soul searching scripture that corroborates our Bit. Listen up first to the psalmist from Psalm 125 – God surrounds his people. ‘They that trust in the Lord shall be as mount Zion which cannot be removed (moved), but abideth for ever. As the mountains are round about (surround) Jerusalem, so the Lord is round about his people from henceforth even for ever.’ (Ps.125:1-2)
What a marvellous promise my fellow believers! If you don’t want to believe it and then act on it, there’s not much I can say. Now hear this most awesome promise of our most amazing God. Jeremiah speaks on His behalf. ‘For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil (calamity), to give you an expected end (a future and a hope).’
Now why would God make such a wonderful promise if He didn’t mean to keep it eh? And we all know that He’s ever-faithful and never reneges on any of His many promises, so why are we so reluctant to believe Him and put our entire trust in Him eh? Only God alone knows yes!
And we’ll close with these wise and wonderful sentiments from Bruh David, taken from Psalm 5 – A prayer for protection. ‘But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that LOVE thy name be joyful in thee. For thou, Lord wilt bless the righteous: with favour wilt thou compass (surround) him as with a shield.’ (Ps.5:11-12)
Oh friends, I don’t know what else to say nuh, except, that as for me and mine, we will follow the Lord. That to me is the wisdom of the ages! Let’s hope that you and yours feel the same way. Much LOVE!
…trusting God…is the only way…to be free from fear… (Uncle Charles – Charles Stanley)
27 Feb 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a son is given, adrenaline, almighty god, aura of love, but have everlasting life, christianity, Christians, confidence, Cross of Calvary, easy marks, enthusiasm, eternal life, Everlasting Father, evil, evil cohorts, faith, fellowship, fodder, for God so loved the world, friends, fun, glorious kingdom, glory hallelujah, God's business, he gave his only begotten son, holy spirit, humble servants, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy, lies, LOVE, Lucifer, lust, mighty god, Monday blues, peace, pride, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, revolution, salvation, should not perish, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, taunts, that whosoever believes in him, the joy of the Lord is our strength, the Prince of Peace, the throne of David, the will of God, there is no fear in love, trust, truth, ungodly world, unto us a child is born, weary souls, wiles, wisdom, Wonderful Counsellor, zeal
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.
Awright friends, it’s the big day, Monday, so let’s rise and shine and go about God’s business the way we ought to nuh. But we won’t be able to do that unless we had a good Sunday; one of fellowship and praise and worship with some rest and relaxation, preparing us for today’s efforts and adventures.
But not to worry, we have the antidote for all of your Monday blues and whatever is currently taking away your joy in Christ. Remember, the joy of the Lord is our strength. (Neh.8:10) No joy – no strength. So let’s sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with all the energy and enthusiasm we can muster.
In harmony and fine voice now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Beautiful friends, beautiful! Jesus, our choirmaster was smiling from ear to ear and swinging His director’s baton with the joy of an impressed leader. Wow! Long time we haven’t seen Him that enthused. So with that wonderful adrenaline now flowing through our bodies, let’s kick start our motors and get right down to business with our ever-awesome Bit.
‘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.’
Everlasting words of truth to live by my brethren! And why wouldn’t they be, since without God’s awesome, amazing, unconditional and magnanimous LOVE, we’d be just easy marks, simple fodder for Lucifer and his evil cohorts. And for those of you who are tired of hearing about LOVE, especially God’s LOVE – I sincerely hope they aren’t any Christians in that group – I believe today is the last day for that Bit.
And as I’ve been doing over the last few days, I’m just going to share relevant scripture on the subject. And what better place to begin than with the original promise of God to deliver us from our iniquity eh?
Listen to Isaiah: ‘For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgement, and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.’ (Is.9:6-7)
And the zeal of the Lord did indeed perform that promise by His sending His only begotten Son to die for our sins on the cross of Calvary! No greater LOVE was ever shown than in that action friends, which proves that our wonderful, our magnificent Creator is ever-faithful and true to His promises!
Now hear this wise advice from John from his first epistle. ‘LOVE not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man LOVE the world, the LOVE of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.’ (1 John 2:15-17) That’s just Christianity 101 my fellow believers!
And we’ll end, most fittingly with some more words of John. ‘There is no fear in LOVE; but perfect LOVE casteth out fear: because fear hath (involves) torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in LOVE. We LOVE him, because he first LOVED us. If a man say, I LOVE God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that LOVETH not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he LOVE God whom he hath not seen. And this commandment have we from him, That he who LOVETH God LOVETH his brother also.’ (1 John 4:18-21)
Ah friends, I do hope that this series of messages on LOVE sparks a revolution in our hearts, souls and minds, so that we can improve our LOVE quotient, for both God and man, as that’s the ONLY thing that will make our world truly go round on a joyful axis. Much LOVE!
…only LOVE can break a heart…only LOVE can mend it again…
20 Feb 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a roof over you head, accused, and know my heart, aura of love, Beelzebub, blessed, Canada, choirmaster, Christians, compassionate, confidence, David, dread, Drunk or sober mind yuh business, enthusiasm, eternal life, evil, faith, Family day, fate, favour, fellowship of faith, forgiveness, forgiving, friends, God's kingdom, grace, Granny's advice, heavenly Father, holy spirit, hope, humble servants, if there be any wicked way in me, innocence, integrity, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy, judge me, know my anxious thoughts, lead me in the way everlasting, lies, LOVE, loving kindness, merciful, mercy, motives, nice thread to wear, peace, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, righteousness., salvation, scowl, search me O God, should not eat, sincere, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, taunts, the truth will set you free, trust, truth, try me, ungodly world, wiles, wisdom, work, workers
Psalm 139:23-24. Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my (anxious) thoughts. And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
And then it was Monday, the day that so many of us workers dread. But technically speaking friends, there’s no need to fear Mondays; that’s if we have used the weekend the right way and gotten enough rest and strength from our weekly fellowship of faith. But if instead we have abused the weekend, then we will be grouchy and miserable and don’t want to get up to go to work.
Some of us in Canada are lucky, or rather blessed, because we don’t have to go to work today, because it’s a Provincial Holiday. Good ole Canada!
But for those of you who have to go work, please look at the situation this way nuh. As Bruh Paul told the Thessalonians. ‘For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.’ (2 Thess.3:10)
So it’s quite okay if you don’t want to work, but just remember that you won’t be eating either, and eventually you won’t have a roof over your head either… or nice threads to wear… (smile) So what’s your choice eh?
Hopefully that lights a fire under us this Monday morning and gets us moaning and groaning out of the bed and up and about. And to further encourage us, we have this antidote for the Monday morning blues, it’s called our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, so let’s sing it out with much verve and enthusiasm and thus raise our adrenaline level.
All together now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Oh friends, that wasn’t too bad, our choirmaster, Jesus didn’t scowl…but neither did He smile, because He knew that the loudest and most raucous voices were coming from the Canadians who did not have to work today.
And we Canadians, please, please, as we celebrate Family Day, or whatever it’s called in your Province, remember Granny’s advice: Drunk or sober, please mind yuh business. And don’t give Beelzebub a chance to get a toehold in your affairs, since it’s always so much trouble to get rid of him, and he can do an awful lot of damage in a short space of time.
But one of the ways to get rid of him is to do as Bruh David does in our Bit, cry out to our God in all sincerity: ‘Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my (anxious) thoughts. And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.’
Yes my fellow believers, the easiest way to handle any problems at all in our lives, regardless of what they might be, is to go to our heavenly Father with them. But we have to be sincere, for remember He doesn’t just listen to our words, but digs deep into our hearts to discover our real motives. And if they are sincere, He will NEVER turn us away, but tenderly lead and guide us to where He wants us to go. That’s the beauty of our wonderful Father – ever LOVING, kind, compassionate, forgiving and merciful!
No wonder Bruh David kept going back to Him, time and again, when he found himself in trouble, whether of his own causing or not. Listen to him from Psalm 143 – Teach me to do thy will. He soulfully declares: ‘Deliver me, O Lord, from mine enemies: I flee (take cover) unto thee to hide me. Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness. Quicken (revive) me, O Lord, for thy name’s sake: for thy righteousness’ sake bring my soul out of trouble. And of thy mercy cut off (put an end to) mine enemies, and destroy all them that afflict my soul: for I am thy servant.’ (Ps.143:9-12)
Oh friends, if our heart is right, how can our merciful and graceful God not respond favourably to such an outpouring of anguish eh? Bruh David knew this principle that’s why he successfully received favour from God. Hear him again from Psalm 26 – Examine me, O Lord, and prove me.
This time he cries out: ‘Judge (vindicate) me, O Lord; for I have walked in mine integrity: I have trusted also in the Lord; therefore I shall not slide (slip). Examine me, O Lord, and prove (try) me; try my reins (test my mind) and my heart. For thy LOVING-kindness is before mine eyes: and I have walked in thy truth.’ (Ps.26:1-3)
Ah mih people, like Job when he was wrongfully accused by his friends, Bruh David seems to have suffered the same fate, and cried out in innocence to his heavenly Father. No reason why we can’t do likewise, provided it’s the truth. Much LOVE!
…in God’s kingdom…the truth will ALWAYS set you free…
18 Feb 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: accomplish nothing in life, adultery, and know my heart, Anselm's quotes, any wicked way, aspire to inspire, authority, Bathsheba, believe, Christ's Church, Christian faith, climate change, come boldly to the throne of grace, courageous, earthly body, excellence, expand your consciousness, expectations, faith, family, fears, friends, get away scotch free, go out on a limb, great invitation, high priest, Jesus Christ, know my anxious thoughts, lead me in the way everlasting, life's circumstances, murder, omnipotent god, our earthly walk with Jesus, outside your comfort zone, presence and power of God, provision, rest, Scrip-Bit, search me O God, secrets, shirt-sleeves, succour, take risks, the bane of our language, the end from the beginning, the wrong side of the fence, tired, trust, try me, Uriah, watchword, weary, wisdom
Psalm 139:23. Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my (anxious) thoughts.
Welcome to another beautiful day in God’s wonderful universe, my Scrip-Bit family and friends! The day is indeed unfurling as it should, as our omnipotent God planned it. But I beg to wonder why our temperature today is supposed to go up to around ten degrees Celsius, from a low of around minus 7, or thereabouts, and then fall back to below freezing temps by Sunday night? They say it’s climate change.
Ah Lord eh! That’s why so many people get sick in these volatile temperature changes! Today a whole lot of people will be out in shirt sleeves, declaring what beautiful spring-like weather it is. Then they’ll get caught without proper protection from the elements later on. But that’s the nature of the beast in these parts. (smile)
Anyway, let’s take a look at a few of our friend Anselm’s quotes for this past week. Remember, his aspiration is to inspire us with his thoughtful words. The first one says: ‘He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life.’ And that’s quite true!
But there are sensible risks and not so sensible ones. So we still have to consider whether the risks are worthwhile or not. It’s brave to go out on limb that seems able to stand your weight, but foolish to go out on one that is obviously too small. The same goes for risks.
That brings us to this quote: ‘If you put yourself in a position where you have to stretch outside your comfort zone, then you are forced to expand your consciousness.’ That’s also true, but then again how far outside of your comfort zone do you want to go, or is it wise for you to go? It’s all a matter of your comfort level.
And this next one declares: ‘The only limits to the possibilities in your life tomorrow are the buts you use today.’ More truth friends! You know how we always like to say marvelous things, then affix them with ‘a but.’ That’s the bane of our modern day language; everything, everything – but.
And the last one tells us. ‘No one rises to low expectations.’ Yes my people, we cannot rise high unless our expectations are high. That’s just the normal workings of the universe. And our Christian faith expects us to keep on rising higher and higher, making excellence the watchword of our earthly walk with Jesus. For if we do not aspire to excellence, the church will simply become stagnant and eventually fall apart.
And I believe that is what’s happening right now. Christ’s church, His earthly body is not growing as it should, for numerous reasons. But we’re not here to talk about that today, we’re here to discuss the motives of our heart, of our spiritual being, as expressed by Bruh David in his grand Psalm 139 – The everlasting presence and power of God.
He boldly, but contritely states in the last two verses – the first one our Bit. ‘Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my (anxious) thoughts. And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.’ (Ps. 39:23-24)
Ah mih people, the overriding question now is, whether we as Christians, are willing, and or able to declare such a brave statement to our Maker? The truth of the matter is that we ought to be. We ought to be so open and be so close to our God, that we shouldn’t fear to go to Him in any situation at all, even though we know we are on the wrong side of the fence.
For as the author of Hebrews reminds us: ‘Let us therefore come boldly (confidently) unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.’ (Heb.4:16)
And I like the explanation the scholars put forward. ‘4:16. Only Christianity provides such boldness for sinful men before a holy God, and that boldness is possible only because of our High Priest (Jesus Christ). The figure of a throne suggests a place of authority and provision. It is the place to obtain God’s grace when it is especially needed.’
Yeh friends, only our wonderful faith exhibits such a confidence in being able to go to God in any and every circumstance. He welcomes us, invites us in the Great Invitation (Matt.11:28-30) to come to Him when we‘re tired and weary and beset by life’s circumstances, and He will give us rest.
No other faith offers such succour my brethren. So I don’t understand why so many of us are afraid to bare our hearts to the Lord. Remember though that’s He’s our Creator, and already knows what’s happening with us, even more than we know. He knows and sees the beginning to the end.
Consequently friends, please let’s stop trying to hide our innermost secrets and fears from Him, because it’s foolish to do so. He wants us to come to Him and let it all out, to show that you truly believe in and trust Him.
Yuh notice how Bruh David went to God without fear on everything – even eventually His adultery with Bathsheba and His murder of Uriah, her husband, after the prophet Nathan berated him about it.
Now we won’t always get away scotch free with our wicked deeds – Bruh David paid a hefty price with strife in his house – but we’ll always get forgiveness and mercy if we sincerely repent of them. That’s wisdom for the ages my people. Please ponder on that today. Much LOVE!
…fear should never override faith…especially in dealing with God…
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