06 Jul 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future, accomplished, assistant, beyond comprehension, beyond expectation, blesses, blessing, brilliant light of Jesus, but by my spirit, cnadlestick, coming in, coming of the Messiah, empowers, encouraging, escape, evil night, expectations, flying colours, glad to be alive, glory hallelujah, glory to God, God's great earth, godforsaken, going out, Guide, halfway home, He that keepeth Israel, hide, holy spirit, I'm not turning back, imbued, impossible, invade, Israel, Jesus, Joshua, magnanimous god, magnificent God, marvellous, Messiah, move mountains, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, my hands are on the plough, neither slumber nor sleep, no way Jose, nor by power, not by might, olive trees, omnipotence, omnipotent god, One Year Book of Bible promises, penetrate every fibre, Pentecost, permeate, praise the performance, praises, preserve thy soul, Protector, ramifications, reassuring words, reward, run, Ruth Harms Calkin, saith the Lord, shade upon thy right hand, strength, the breath of life, the dark, the Lord is thy keeper, the moon by night, the Spirit of God, the straight and narrow path, the sun shall not smite thee, the Task, unite, victory, vision, walk on water, Wednesday Wail, wherewithal, wisdom, You electrify me, Zechariah, Zerubbabel
Zechariah 4:6b. Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord.
And then it was another bright and sunshiny day on God’s great earth!
And all His people joyfully declared: ‘Glory to God for bringing us safely through the dark and evil night into the glorious and brilliant light of His Son and our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!’
Yes friends, our wonderful God is always working on our behalf! What does the scripture say? ‘Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is thy keeper (protector): the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand. The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night.
The Lord shall preserve (keep) thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul. The Lord shall preserve (keep) thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth,and even for ever more’ (Ps.121:4-8)
Ah mih people what encouraging and reassuring words! They tell us all about the sustaining power of our omnipotent God!
Now hear this other aspect of our marvellous and magnanimous God. It comes in the form of a poem ‘The Task,’ from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin.
And it says: ‘Lord, You give me a task So utterly impossible So totally beyond comprehension – The very thought of it Startles me. I want to run hide escape Anything, Lord. Then You electrify me You invade and permeate me
You penetrate every fiber of me Until the task is accomplished By Your own magnificent power. Then You praise the performance Your creativity achieved And You reward me beyond expectation – As though I had done it All by myself, My Father.’
Wow mih breddren! Isn’t that a most magnificent God? He gives you a task that seems utterly impossible, then gives you the wherewithal to perform it with flying colours, then turns around and praises and blesses you, as though you had done it all on your own, when, without His omnipotence, you couldn’t even have accomplished the initial step!
Oh my people, I feel that way everyday when I come to write the Bit, for basically it’s not my idea, but the Lord’s, and through His Holy Spirit, He guides and enables me to write it. Yuh think I could have been writing the Bit for nine years now in my own strength and wisdom? No way Jose! It’s the Lord who empowers me each and every day!
And the scripture verse on which that poem is based is also our Bit for today. ‘Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord.’ Yes friends, it’s not through might nor power, but through His Holy Spirit that the Lord accomplishes His tasks through us!
Now that piece of scripture comes from a vision of the prophet Zechariah about a magnificent, golden candlestick and two olive trees. And the angel in the vision asked Zechariah if he knew its significance?
And when Zechariah said no, the angel informed him. ‘Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord.’ (Zech.4:6) That’s the full verse there.
And the scholars offer us this explanation. ‘4:1-14. The fifth vision, the golden candlestick and the two olive trees: The work of God (the rebuilding of the temple) would be accomplished through God’s leaders, Joshua and Zerubbabel, who would be enabled to perform their tasks by the Spirit of God.
The vision indicates that future Israel will be a blessing to all the nations of the world through an abundant supply of the Spirit of God as the result of the coming of the Messiah, who will unite the offices of priest and king in Himself.’
And did it all come to pass as prophesied my people? It surely did! For since the coming of Jesus, beginning at Pentecost, all believers have been imbued with the Holy Spirit as their guide and assistant. In the olden days the Spirit would come upon someone when the Lord needed them to do something special, but didn’t dwell within them as He does in us now…
And all God’s children declared a loud, sincere and heartfelt, ‘Glory to God for His wonderful goodness to the children of men!’ And He certainly deserves oodles of glory my breddren!
Now we won’t get into the ramifications of our Bit today, we’ll leave that for tomorrow, the Lord willing. Let’s go home instead by declaring our Wednesday Wail with sincerity, truth, faith and hope, some of the things that keep us going on the right path, the straight and narrow one, in this evil, godforsaken world.
Wailing 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!’
Oh friends, I do hope those words were sincerely and truthfully felt and meant, because only then can we enthusiastically go out with great expectations of victory, and do the important work Christ has entrusted us with. Have a godly and blessed day my people! Much LOVE!
…when the Holy Spirit comes upon you…your life changes for the better…you can walk on water and move mountains…
04 Jul 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: 4th July, at noon, aura of love, be about Christ's business, be prepared, Beelzebub, believers in Jesus Christ, calls us home, Canada Day, Chicago, Christ's Church, Christians, come up higher, complaining, confidence, cry aloud, dangerous, deceitful, dissension, divisions, does anybody care, Does anybody know what time it is, double heart, Drunk or sober mind yuh business, enemy, enthusiasm, eternal life, evening, ever-faithful God, evil, evil minions, faith, falsely, fellowship, fervent followers, flattering lips, friends, get our houses in order, God's flock, good neighbourly relations, Granny's advice, honesty, hope, humble servants, in splendour and power, inconsistent mind, inner sanctum, invincible, Jesus Christ, Jesus returns, joy, joyful band of Christians, last bastion, lies, lollygagging, LOVE, Lucifer, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, morning, neighbour, peace, planet earth, pray, rejuvenation of spirit, renewed vitality, resting on their laurels, salvation, sense of right and wrong, spiritual armour, stand up strong, steadfast faith, stick together, strife filled, the clock's ticking, the end times, the last days, the Lord shall save me, tragic, Trojan horse, trust, truth, unfair, ungodly world, unkind place, vanity, victory, wary, weary souls, wiles, wisdom
Psalm 12:2. They speak vanity (idly, falsely) every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with double heart (an inconsistent mind) do they speak.
HAPPY 4TH OF JULY U. S. OF A!
02 Jul 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a mustard seed, affection mind, Anselm, aspires to inspire, attributes of God, believe, bread, brethren, cast out a demon, character, christ lives in me, Christian, circumstances, Colossians, crucified, depressed, desires, disarray, doubts, downcast, earthly things, faith, faithfulness, fellowship, fine spirits, forefathers, forgiveness, freed, Galatians, God's Word, grace, heavenly things, hid in Christ, holy spirit, hope, impossible, inaudible, incredible, intimate with God, invisible, Jews, justification, knowledge, live by faith, live in the flesh, magnanimous, magnificent, majestic, medicine, meditating, mercy, miracles, move mountains, nothing shall be impossible, pandemic, power, prayer, reading, Redeemer, signs, sin, sinful life, son of god, spiritual realm, starve to death, strife, Supreme Being, taking care of, the bread of life, the law, truth, unbelief, unbelievers, unconditional LOVE, virtues, watching over, wilderness, wisdom, wonders, work wonders
John 6:48. I am that bread of life.
Welcome to another Saturday morning on God’s great earth my friends! Hope it finds us all in fine spirits, and if not, by the time we are finished here, I know those spirits will have miraculously been lifted by the Holy Spirit that indwells us, as we talk about God; His holy word, His unconditional LOVE, His freely offered grace, His undeserved mercy, His never-ending forgiveness, and His eternal faithfulness!
Now that alone should lift our spirits this Saturday morning my people! Wow! What a majestic, magnificent and magnanimous God we serve my fellow believers! I don’t see how any of us can stay depressed and downcast for very long with such a Supreme Being watching over and taking care of us.
It’s just not possible if we concentrate on all the wonderful attributes of our God, instead of the prevailing unfortunate or uncomfortable circumstances surrounding us.
And my Christian brethren, I have the right medicine for what we’re talking about. It’s contained in a recent quote from our friend Anselm, who always aspires to inspire us. And this time I think he’s done a heck of a job.
Listen to this quote. ‘When we do what we can, the LORD will do what we can’t. FAITH hears the inaudible, sees the invisible, believes the incredible, and receives the impossible!!! Feed your FAITH, and your doubts will starve to death.’
Oh my people, my people, what glorious, indisputable, gospel truth! Faith is that good my brethren. That’s why they say it can move mountains and work wonders. What did Jesus say to His disciples when they asked why they were unable to cast out a demon?
‘Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove (move); and nothing shall be impossible unto you.’ (Matt.17:20)
Yes friends, it only takes a little faith to do plenty things, and just as that little mustard seed grows into a big tree, so can our faith, if we’ll allow it do so by reading and meditating on God’s word, through fellowship with other believers and personal prayer…but first we have to believe.
Without belief nothing happens in the spiritual realm of Jesus. And that is borne out by our Bit. ‘I am that bread of life.’
It’s a simple, but true statement, but Jesus had a most difficult time getting His people to believe Him. In spite of all the signs and wonders and miracles He did, they still refused to believe. But they certainly wanted the physical bread they thought He was offering them.
Steups! Those long ago Jews, especially the leaders, were certainly a hard-headed, stubborn bunch of people. Just look at how their forefathers behaved in the wilderness although the Lord was looking after them.
Sadly though, we have a lot of unbelievers around today too. In fact too many of the world’s population are unbelievers, that’s partly why our world is in such complete disarray and strife is pandemic.
Anyway, let’s look at a couple of scriptures that corroborate our Bit. First up is this verse from Bruh Paul’s epistle to the Galatians, where he is saying that justification is not of the law.
He solemnly declares: ‘I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of (by faith in) the Son of God, who LOVED me, and gave himself for me.’ (Gal.2:20) Yes friends, Bruh Paul was not living by the law again, but through faith in Christ.
Listen to this explanation from the scholars’. ‘2:20. To be crucified with Christ means the believer has been freed from the law and from the ruling power of sin that was aroused by the law. Nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me is interpreted: “And I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.” Since the believer has been freed from the law and sin, the old sinful life no longer asserts itself as formerly.
Instead, “Christ liveth in me,” that is, Jesus cultivates within the believer (Paul) His own desires, virtues, character, and power, thus morally transforming him and working through him in others. Paul lives his current Christian life by the faith of (in) the Son of God, that is, by depending on Him for strength and all necessities.’
And so should we my people, if we are true believers in Christ. Now hear how Bruh Paul tells it to the Colossians. ‘Set your affection (mind) on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.’ (Col.3:2-4)
Ah my fellow believers, it’s truly time to stop concentrating on, and being preoccupied with earthly things and look to things in heaven instead, since we have been reborn in Christ, who now sits in heavenly places.
And the scholars’ explain. ‘3:3. Your life is hid with Christ in God (or, “Your life is deposited with Christ, who is in intimate relation with God.”) As all wisdom and knowledge reside in Christ (2:3), so the believer’s new life is stored up in Him.
This means that the Christian life belongs to the spiritual or heavenly real. Jesus is in intimate relation with God; so are His followers. Since the Colossians now belong to the heavenly realm and are intimate with God, they should seek those matters and interests pertaining to heaven and not to earth.’
So friends, what’s it to be eh? Are we going to live our lives in and for Christ, as a new creation, or are we going to let the law and its sinful attributes turn us back to our former ways?
I do hope that we’ll ponder all that we’ve said and then make the wise decision to live in and for Christ! Much LOVE!
…glory be…our Redeemer lives…and we live in Him…and through Him…and for Him…
01 Jul 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: 4th July, backbone, Beelzebub, behaviour, beliefs on me, believers in Jesus Christ, belly, best big country, blood, bread, bread of life, came down from heaven, Canada Day, Capernaum, cause havoc, celebrations, drink, drink my blood, Drunk or sober mind yuh business, dwells in me, eternal life, everlasting life, evil cronies, fellowship, figuratively, Friday chant, fun, generous help, glorious kingdom, Granny's advice, hardens, I in him, I live by the Father, in Jesus' name, invitation, Jesus Christ, keep our wits, literally, live for ever, Lucifer, make it anywhere, manna, meat, my flesh, Northamerica, northern climes, partying, perspective, physical, promise, refreshed, relaxation, renewed, rest, rough times, safely, spiritual, spiritual armour, suicide, synagogue, template, TGIF!, Thank God for Friday, the enemy has no power, the Eucharist, the Good Book, the life of the world, the living bread, the living Father, the Son of man, the wilderness, the Word of god, toughens, truth, trying times, unprotected spot, week of work, weekend, wine, wisdom, wise
John 6:48. I am that bread of life.
HAPPY CANADA DAY !
Happy 149th Birthday Canada! May the Lord bless and keep you strong and godly that you might see another 149 birthdays! Amen!
And though you may have recently declined in some respects, you are still the best big country in the world! And I believe that with my whole heart. I don’t want to live in any other big country. I have spent more than half of my life here, and obviously there have been some rough times, like there are everywhere, but you’ve never mistreated me.
And the truth is, if you can make it in the northern climes, you can make it anywhere in the world. It hardens and toughens you up, gives you belly and backbone, which so many of us sadly lack in these trying times.
And without a doubt, the populace, at least the working populace is overjoyed that today is Friday and also a holiday, so there’s been much shouting and carrying on re ‘TGIF! Thank God for Friday and this long weekend! The partying will be terrific! Lots of food and drink! Thank God for Fridays and the weekends yes!’
Ah Lord eh! (smile) Now to help us correct the overblown idea of the weekend being the time for excessive partying, let’s chant our Friday Chant, which offers us a much better perspective.
As one 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 friends, our lives would be much richer if we’d use that template for our weekend behaviour. Oh, and by the way, I’d be rather remiss if I didn’t throw in Granny’s wise advice for this long weekend. ‘Sonny boy, ah beg yuh, please, drunk or sober, please mind yuh business!’
And better advice than that could not be given my people, for ole Lucifer is always sneakily trawling around, seeking a soft or unprotected spot in our spiritual armour to jump in and cause havoc. So please let’s not give him any chances during our celebrations this weekend nuh.
And if you think things will be humming up here this weekend, just think about what the U.S. will be like as they celebrate their 4th of July Independence Day on Monday. Mama yo! The whole of North America will be jumping this weekend, and Beelzebub and his evil cronies will certainly be busy too!
But if we just keep our wits about us, we’ll be fine, since the enemy has no power over believers in Jesus Christ unless we allow him to.
Now let’s address our Bit; the same one of the past couple days. ‘I am that bread of life.’
Christ while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum, had been trying to explain to His listeners who He was and His purpose here on earth. But they were most likely more concerned with physical bread to fill their stomachs than the spiritual kind that Jesus was referring to.
Just before our Bit, He declares unto them: ‘Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. I am that bread of life. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.
I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.’ (John 6:47-51)
What a wonderful invitation and promise my people! Do you want to live forever? Then eat the bread of eternal life that Jesus offers! It’s that simple.
Today it might be for us, because we know the scriptures, but back then it was a tough thing for the people to imagine much less understand. And the Good Book tells us: ‘The Jews therefore strove (disputed) among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?’ (John 6:52) They didn’t realize that Jesus was speaking figuratively, rather than literally.
‘Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat (food) indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.
He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by (because of) me. This is that bread that came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.’ (John 6:53-58)
Now imagine talking about eating your flesh and drinking your blood to any group of people at all, much less one forbidden to drink blood? (Lev.7:26-27) Obviously they were stunned and couldn’t fathom His speech.
But friends, today, we know that Jesus was talking figuratively, meaning the Eucharist that we now celebrate. The bread represents His flesh and the wine His blood. So technically speaking, we have no excuses for not living forever, having eternal life, if we so desire. Unfortunately, many of us refuse it, but the wise choose it, because it is the word of God, the truth.
Friends, I do hope that you are amongst that group of wise people who chose Jesus’ offer of eternal life, for that is the wisdom of all wisdom! Much LOVE!
…to refuse the Son of man’s offer of eternal life…is like committing suicide…
30 Jun 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, a positive outlook, a prayer away, a strong will, abundance, advantage, almighty god, backbone, believe in what you cannot see, belly, blessed, boost our spirits, brethren, broken, Calvary's cross, challenge, Christian, circumstances, cleansed, comforting, confidence, confronted, courage, creativity, curse, death, direction, divine protection, embrace, endless, enthusiasm, eternal life, faith, family, favour, fear, fears, friend, friends, fulfillment, give thanks, Glory be, glory hallelujah, grow, guiding light, health, holy spirit, hurt, in the name of Jesus, Jesus Christ, King of Kings, life, Long may He reign, Lord and Saviour, Lord of Lords, mystery, negative experiences, negative word, overtake me, overwhelming, pain, panic, peace, penalyt for sin, pity, play it twice, power, prince of peace, problems, promotion, prosper, reconciliation, Redeemer, rejuvenating, resolved, Robert Nathan, run away, sacrificed, self-control, self-discipline, selfless sacrifice, set free, sins, sorrow, spoken over me, strength, succeed, success, talent, teaches, the bread of life, the Lamb that was slain, the Life, the Light, the Son is shining, the straight and narrow path, the sun is shining, the Truth, the veil, the Way, Thursday Blessings, unbelievers, ungodly world, we face nothing alone, weather, welcome, when it's nice, wine roses and song, wisdom
John 6:48. I am that bread of life.
Well a hearty welcome to you this Thursday morning mih lovelies! The sun is shining in my neck of the woods, and I do hope it’s shining in yours too. But just in case it isn’t, please remember that the Son is ALWAYS shining even in the worst of physical weather and circumstances!
That’s the wonderful advantage we have over the unbelievers; we know that our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is there for us ALL the time! He is just a prayer away…
And all God’s children heartily and sincerely exclaimed: ‘Glory be to the Lamb that was slain, that was sacrificed on Calvary’s cross for our sins! Long may He reign in our hearts and souls! Amen!’
Yeh friends, there’s none other like our wonderful Redeemer Jesus Christ! Couldn’t be, for the world only has room for ONE Prince of Peace, ONE Lord of Lords and ONE King of Kings… and that’s our Jesus, our friend and guiding light! Glory Hallelujah!
Now I want to share an interesting and very relevant quote from my One More Day Daily Meditations for People with Chronic Illness. I believe I’ve shared it before, but as we say, when it’s nice, you can play it twice, or even thrice! (smile)
The quote is attributed to one Robert Nathan, but there are so many people out there with that name that I wasn’t able to identify the exact one.
However, the quote says: ‘Give thanks for sorrow that teaches you pity; for pain that teaches you courage – and give exceeding thanks for the mystery which remains a mystery still – the veil that hides you from the infinite, which makes it possible for you to believe in what you cannot see.’
Yes friends, that’s what we call FAITH! And although we don’t like or want to have those negative experiences that cause us hurt and pain, we ought to embrace them because it’s only through experiencing them that we grow in courage and strength, and yes FAITH!
If everyday was strictly wine, roses and song, we’d have no belly and backbone – we already have precious little of that.
As the text says: ‘We cannot run away from problems. Tremendous problems must be confronted and resolved. Fears can be overwhelming. Tasks seem endless, and the challenge seems too great. It is comforting to realize we face nothing alone.’
And is that ever so true my Christian brethren! We’re never alone! The Holy Spirit of Christ, which indwells EVERY believer, is ALWAYS there to lead and guide us, to strengthen and comfort us in our every need!
So Christians ought always to be positive people since we have the greatest power in the universe dwelling within us. Unfortunately that’s not the case with a lot of us. Too many believers are scared and fearful to face the days, the troubles and problems that seem to be always confronting them.
But listen to the energizer at the end of the devotion. ‘I will not allow fear and panic to overtake me today. Courage will open the door to wisdom and peace.’
Yes my precious people, we need to believe that as we step out into the crazy, dangerous and ungodly world that currently surrounds us. And to help boost our spirits, and keep us on the straight and narrow path that leads to Almighty God, let’s declare our Thursday Blessings with premium confidence and glorious enthusiasm.
All together 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!’
Well said my people, well said! Now let’s act it out in real life nuh. And that shouldn’t be a problem, because as our Bit so confidently states, we follow the person, Jesus Christ, who so truthfully declared two thousand years ago: ‘I am that bread of life.’
And indeed He is friends! He gave His physical life for us, so that we could have eternal life, rejuvenating reconciliation with the Father. That’s what He came down from heaven to do.
Without His selfless sacrifice, we’d have no opportunity for life, because the scripture plainly states that the penalty for sin is death, and we were certainly embroiled in sin until His death cleansed us and set us free.
Furthermore, NOBODY can get to the Father but through Him! And a lot of people refuse to belief that. But my faithful brethren, Jesus is truly the LIGHT, the LIFE, the TRUTH, and the WAY!
Let’s never forget that, and keep embracing Him with all our hearts, minds, bodies and souls, for that is indeed wisdom at its zenith! Much LOVE!
…there is power…absolute power…in the holy name of Jesus…
29 Jun 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future with Jesus, artesian well, assurance, Beelzebub, belief, believe, blessed, bounden duty, bread, bread from heaven, bread of life, challenge, comes down from heaven, confidence, crapaud smoke we pipe, dissatisfaction, doubt, empty days, encourage, eternal, evil minions, flowers, fortify, freed me, glad to be alive, glorious kingdom, gloriously rich, glory hallelujah, God of glory, halfway home, hearts unfold, heaven, honest surrender, hunger, I'm not looking back, ignorance, immortal gladness, impoverished heart, Irreversible, Jesus Christ, joy, joyful joyful, life, life-changing thoughts, Lord and Saviour, Lord of love, LOVE, manna, melt the clouds, Moses, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, my hands are on the plough, never hunger, never thirst, One Year Book of Bible promises, opening to the sun above, personal lives, positive vibes, praise and worship, Ruth Harms Calkin, sadness, seeking signs, sheer joy, signs, sin, spiritual, surrender, thanks and praise, the breath of life, the dark of doubt, the lake of fire, the light of day, the true bread, they that have not seen, thirst, thoughts, unmoved, uplift one's soul, vibes, vim and vigour, we adore you, Wednesday Wail, well, wisdom, wonders
John 6:48. I am that bread of life.
Awright friends, let’s begun the show with a li’l praise and worship nuh, like we ought to. Let’s sing the first two verses of the beautiful hymn, ‘Joyful, joyful…’
In full voice now: ‘Joyful, joyful, we adore You, God of glory, Lord of LOVE, Hearts unfold like flowers before You, Opening to the sun above. Melt the clouds of sin and sadness; Drive the dark of doubt away; Giver of immortal gladness, Fill us with the light of day Hallelujah we adore You! Hallelujah! Amen! Amen! Amen!’
Oh my people, that was indeed a rousing rendition! Nothing like giving thanks and praise to uplift one’s soul! Now let’s keep up the positive vibes by getting into this poem from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings By Ruth Harms Calkin. This one’s titled ‘Irreversible Yes.’
And it says: ‘God, You have done A beautiful thing for me. You have freed me from the dissatisfaction Of so many empty days and months. Into my impoverished heart You have poured life-changing thoughts of You Making each new day gloriously rich.
You have struck a deep artesian well in my soul As sheer joy springs forth. All because in an act of honest surrender When life had lost its challenge I said an irreversible YES to You!’
Oh friends, that’s the joy and beauty that springs forth when we say an irreversible ‘YES’ to God! Glory Hallelujah!
Those who refuse to say yes to Him, surely don’t know what they’re missing nuh, but it’s our bounden duty to point it out to them through our words and the godly actions of our lives. So please let’s do that sincerely and diligently nuh, so that we can glorify our heavenly Father and spur on His glorious kingdom as we ought to!
And we not done yet mih people; more positive vibes to come as we declare our Wednesday Wail with plenty vim and vigour, showing that we truly believe and mean it. (smile)
Wailing 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!’
Oh my fellow believers, am I ever glad to be alive, having Almighty God’s awesome breath of life flowing through me this Wednesday morning at then end of June 2016! I surely hope you are too. For what good is being alive if you’re not enjoying it eh? None whatsoever!
And if we’re happy to be alive, then we need to do the things that keep the joy surging forth in our spirits, meaning keeping our hands firmly to the plough and focusing on the future, that glorious future that Jesus has planned for us.
And all God’s people declared a loud and thankful ‘Hallelujah! Amen!’
Now let’s turn to our Bit, which is also the promise upon which the ‘Irreversible Yes’ poem was based. And it’s such a simple but awesomely powerful statement made by our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. ‘I am that bread of life.’
What confidence and assurance our Saviour displays! Earlier on, He’s been trying to teach His listeners about what truly matters. They were seeking signs of Him that would encourage and fortify their belief. Then they taunted Him by saying: ‘Our father’s did eat manna in the desert; as it is written, He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ (John 6:31)
I guess Jesus spirit must have been moved, and He sadly shook His head at their ignorance. ‘Then said Jesus unto them, verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven.
For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread.’ (John 6:32-34)
No doubt the hungry crowd was thinking in terms of physical bread, but Jesus was talking about spiritual stuff. ‘And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life; he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.’ (John 6:35)
What a powerful statement friends! The problem though, is do we believe it, or are we like those who heard it spoken from Christ’s lips, but remained unmoved? I certainly hope that we do believe it with all our souls, bodies, hearts and minds, otherwise crapaud smoke we pipe!
Why do I say that? Listen to this explanation from the scholars. ‘6:35. I am the bread of life means the bread that gives life. The life of which He speaks is spiritual and eternal.’
Oh my people, that means if we don’t believe we won’t have eternal life! And that’s the worst thing that can happen to a human being! Just imagine being eventually cast into the lake of fire with Beelzebub and all his evil minions nuh? Think what it would be like to endure such tribulation?
Yuh think our earthly trials and tribulations are bad? Well that will take the cake! And all because we did not believe the simple words of our Lord and Saviour. It boggles my mind to think that so many of them saw the signs and wonders He did here on earth and yet still refused to believe.
Oh friends, we didn’t see those personally, but thankfully we do believe, and our belief is strong and irrepressible because in these modern times, He’s also wrought signs and wonders in our personal lives.
Let’s keep on believing friends, and keep on doing what He desires of us, for that is undoubtedly the wisdom of heaven! Much LOVE!
…blessed are they that have not seen…and yet have believed… (John 20:29b)
27 Jun 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adrenalin, affection, as for me and my house, aura of love, banished, blessed is the man, blessings, choose, Christians, compass, complaining state, condemned, confidence, conquerors, conviction, desolate, encouragement, enthusiasm, envy, eternal life, evil, excellent, falsehood, favour, found guilty, friends, fruit, glorious kingdom, good cheer, gospel truth, grouse, harmoniously, hearsay, holy spirit, human beings, humble, humble servants, in season, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy, lies, LOVE, maketh the Lord his trust, mama yo, miserable, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, on the cross, overcome, peace, personal experience, promise, prosper, quagmire, redeems, rejoice, rejuvenation of spirit, renewed vitality, resistance, respects not the proud, rest, righteousness., rise and shine, rivers of water, sacrificial death, salvation, sins, slay the wicked, sour, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, surround, the enemy, the right foot, the soul of his servants, trust, truth, truthful, turns aside to lies, ungodly world, we will serve the Lord, whining, whom you will serve, wisdom, wise decision, wither
Psalm 40:4. Blessed is that man that maketh the Lord his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.
Well friends, it’s a brand new day called Monday! Mama yo! (smile)
And we all know what means; time to rise and shine and get to work. Now we can either do that in a sour, miserable, complaining state, or we can do it filled with the peace and LOVE and good cheer of Jesus. It’s your choice. But believe me the latter way is the best way.
One way or the other you have to go to work, so who are you hurting if you go there whining and complaining eh? Most likely yourself.
What I don’t understand about human beings is that we have to go to work, that’s a given, so why constantly grouse and complain when the work day rolls around, especially when, as Christians we have God’s peace and LOVE and otherwise that will enable us to overcome our natural resistance?
Anyway, that’s for each of us to figure out individually. Right now let’s try to help the situation by singing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with much enthusiasm and positive conviction. All together now, harmoniously and in strong voice.
‘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 was excellent! Or as Nuculer, a long ago friend would say ‘most excellent man, most excellent!’ And Jesus, our choir director thought so too, going by the big smile on His face and His energetic working of the director’s baton.
That means mih people, that we’re getting off on the right foot, with plenty enthusiasm and adrenalin coursing through our bodies, so let’s get out there in the ungodly world and show them what’s what nuh!
Show them the true LOVE and affection of Jesus, so that they can envy us and want to come to Him too to receive the salvation and eternal life that we possess through His sacrificial death on the cross, which banished our sins forever!
Ah mih breddren, I’m chuckling here as the Spirit moves me, and the brain is thinking faster than the pen can write. (smile) But enough fooling around, let’s get to our Bit, the same one as yesterday: ‘Blessed is that man that maketh the Lord his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.’
Oh friends impeccable truth and wisdom for all of us to live by! If we would only truly trust in God and live a decent, humble, truthful life, this world would be such a wonderful place, instead of the deep, dark and evil quagmire that it now is!
The sad part about it all is that only we Christians can do anything positive with it. That’s why we have to do things like go out to work on Monday mornings with a joyful and peaceful attitude, and thus set a good example. That’s the only way the heathen will come to heel and seek Jesus.
Let’s move on now to some scriptures that corroborate our Bit. Listen to Bruh David from Psalm 34 – The Lord hears the righteous. ‘Evil shall slay the wicked: and they that hate the righteous shall be desolate (condemned, found guilty). The Lord redeemeth the soul of his servants: and none of them that trust in him shall be desolate (condemned, found guilty).’ (Ps.34:21-22)
What wonderful words of promise and encouragement my brethren! And as we always note, Bruh David isn’t speaking from hearsay nuh, but from personal experience. That means we can trust his words without fear of falsehood. And listen to Bruh David once again, this time 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) Friends, Bruh David certainly knew what he was talking about.
And we’ll end at the beginning; (smile) Psalm 1- Blessed are the righteous – which clearly spells out the kind of life the righteous can expect. ‘Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly (wicked), nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate (ponder) day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers (channels) of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.’ (Ps.1:1-3)
Oh friends, oh friends, what more encouragement do we need to live a righteous and godly life eh? I certainly don’t need anymore, for me to at least try and live right. So I’ll leave us to ponder those thoughts today, to decide whether you want to live a godly or ungodly life. It’s all up to you. Please make the wise decision. Much LOVE!
…choose you this day…whom ye will serve…but as for me and my house…we will serve the Lord. (Josh.24:15)
26 Jun 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a lying tongue, a proud look, a sun, abominations to God, actions, all other ground, an honest wage, angry, aspirations, be wise, believers in Jesus Christ, blessed is that man, blood, built on nothing less, character, Christ-like, Christians, conduct, conversion, covenant, darkness veils, falsehood, faultless, fear, foundation, glory, God is not a man, gospel truth, grace, habits, haughty, heartfelt praise, homage, immovable, indisputable truth, Jesus Christ, Jesus' blood, judges, kindled, kiss the son, lean on Jesus' name, lie not, lies, LOVE, maketh the Lord his trust, Moses, my anchor holds, my hope, my stay, nature, no good thing, oath, on Christ, Our Daily Bread, pay himself, pay the workers, perish, praise, proud, Proverbs, put off the old man, respects not the prous, righteousness, serve the Lord, shed innocent blood, shield, sinking sand, stand before the throne, stormy gale, Sunday, support me, the flood, the forces of man, the heathen, the Lord's Day, the new man, the rock that's Christ, the solid rock, the Son of man, the sons of Korah, the sweetest frame, thoughts, Trini Quote, trumpet sound, trust, truth, turn aside to lies, unchanging grace, values, walk uprightly, wisdom, withhold, within the veil, words, worship, wrath
Psalm 40:4. Blessed is that man that maketh the Lord his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.
Well my beautiful fellow believers in Jesus Christ, it’s Sunday, the Lord’s Day, a day that’s supposed to be filled with even more praise and worship than usual! So let’s begin the proceedings by exuding praise in the form of the hymn we all know and LOVE: ‘My Hope is Built on Nothing Less.’
Let’s raise our loud and harmonious voices to heaven with sincere, heartfelt praise: ‘My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness; I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus’ name. (Refrain: On Christ, the solid rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand, all other ground is sinking sand.)
When darkness veils his lovely face, I rest on his unchanging grace; in every high and stormy gale, my anchor holds within the veil. [Refrain] His oath, his covenant, his blood, support me in the whelming flood; when all around my soul gives way, he then is all my hope and stay. [Refrain]
When he shall come with trumpet sound, O may I then in him be found, dressed in his righteousness alone, faultless to stand before the throne. [Refrain] On Christ, the solid rock I stand; all other ground is sinking sand, all other ground is sinking sand.’
And that my people is the gospel truth of all gospel truths! (smile) But seriously though, if you’re not standing on the solid rock that’s our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, then sadly and unfortunately you’re standing on sinking sand; sand that will sink and or wash away at the slightest rain or earth tremor!
The only thing that can withstand the forces of man and nature is the rock that’s Christ! So please friends, let’s err on the side of caution and wisdom and make sure that we’re all standing on that solid rock that’s Christ nuh, so our foundation will be immovable.
Now let’s check out this ‘Trini Quote of De Day,’ from mih Trini friend. ‘If yuh don’t pay de worker, he will pay himself.’ A wise caution to someone who has hired/planning to hire a worker/s to pay an honest wage; if not, the worker/s may take their just payment or even more. Have a great day, Watch your thoughts: They become words Watch your words: They become actions Watch your actions: They become habits Watch your habits: They become character.’
Yes mih breddren, more wisdom and indisputable truth! And don’t get too comfortable, thinking that you’ve heard all the wisdom and truth for the day, because you haven’t. (smile) Listen to our Bit and learn. ‘Blessed is that man that maketh the Lord his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.’
Wow mih people, can you handle so much truth and wisdom in one sitting? Of course you can, because you’re Christians, true believers in Jesus Christ, and with Him supporting us, we can handle anything!
And for those of you who read ‘Our Daily Bread Devotional,’ you’ll realize that yesterday’s devotion sparked today’s Bit; the same psalm they read from, and the same hymn they noted. But the Bit’s different, as you can see. (smile) And to further prove it, let’s delve into some other scriptures that corroborate our Bit.
Hear these words of wisdom and warning from Psalm 2 – Why do the heathen rage. ‘Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son (an act of homage and submission), lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.’ (Ps.2:10-12)
Oh friends, what more can I say to that eh? Nothing really, except to add that the writing of that Psalm is attributed to Bruh David in Acts 4:25. Now you know. (smile)
And if you don’t believe Bruh David, then listen to the sons of Korah from Psalm 84 – Blessed are they that dwell in thy house. ‘For the Lord God is a sun and shield: the Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. O Lord of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.’ (Ps.84:11-12)
Ah mih people, we’ve been mostly concerning ourselves with the part of the Bit that talks about trusting God, but there are also two other parts, not respecting the proud and haughty and arrogant, as well as one who indulges in lies.
Cousin Sol puts it nicely in Proverbs, as three of the seven things that are abominations to our God: ‘A proud look (haughty eyes), a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood.’ (Prov.6:17) And that’s no lie! (smile)
And to shed more light on God’s character, here’s what Moses says in the Book of Numbers. ‘God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? Or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good.’ (Num.23:17) Yes friends, God is truth, therefore He cannot lie! But with mankind it’s certainly a different story.
Now listen to Bruh Paul’s advice on the subject to the Colossians. ‘Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; and have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him.’ (Col.3:9-10)
And the scholars explain those verses thus: ‘3:9. Seeing means “since.” The old man is all that a person was prior to salvation: his worldly thinking and sinful acts. Since all this was renounced at conversion, one should lie not. Falsehood ill becomes a person claiming to be a disciple of Him who said, “I am the…truth.”
‘3:10. The new man is the person one becomes after conversion: he possesses a new nature, values, aspirations, and a new life-style. This “new man” is constantly being renewed or developed until he attains a mature knowledge of the God who (re) created him. The more a believer knows and understands of God, the more he will be like God in character and conduct.’
And what better way to end than on that note my people. So please, until we meet again, God willing, please ponder all that we’ve said to day, and go safely to LOVE and serve the Lord! Much LOVE!
…one can’t become Christ-like…unless one knows about Christ…and then acts Christ-like…
23 Jun 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, a positive outlook, a strong will, abundance, adoration, affliction, appreciation, belief, blessed, blessed be God, blessings, breath of life, broken, celebrate, character, characteristics, characterized, christianity, Christians, comfort, comforted of God, courage, created in God's image, creativity, cry in the desert, curse, direction, divine protection, enjoy, enthusiasm, ever-Loving, faith, family, favour, forgive, friends, glory, Glory be, grace, graciously given, have nothing, health, holy spirit, honour, Hour of Power, I cry unto thee daily, I lift up my soul, in affliction I call, in the name of Jesus, Jesus Christ, life, light, LOVE, magnanimous, magnificent, mercies, mete and right, my comfort by day, my Saviour, My song in the night, my soul's delight, negative word, New Testament, not walk with thee, O Jesus, omnipotent, planet earth, plenteous in mercy, praise, praise and worship, promotion, prosper, ready to forgive, rejoice, Satan, saving grace, self-control, self-discipline, sin, sincerity, sonship, spoon feeding, spunk, succeed, success, supernatural strength, talent, tender love, the Father of mercies, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the God of All Comfort, the soul of thy servant, the source, this is the day the Lord has made, Thursday 's Blessings, thy face to see, tribulation, wander, we are nothing, we will be glad and rejoice in it, wisdom
2 Corinthians 1:3. Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort.
Oh my people, our wonderful God has seen fit to bless us with another marvellous day on planet earth! Glory be!
So let’s reciprocate nuh, first by joyfully declaring, as the psalmist did: ‘This is the day which the Lord hath made; we WILL rejoice and be glad in it!’ (Ps.118:24)
Yes friends, it’s only mete and right that we celebrate and enjoy what our God has graciously given to us!
And to further show our appreciation, let’s sing this li’l soulful ditty I heard on the Hour of Power the other night. There was another song I had planned to use, but after hearing the sweet, soulfulness of this one, which I didn’t know, I had no choice but to change my mind. (smile)
It’s simply titled ‘My Song in the Night.’ Please sing with me. ‘O Jesus my saviour, my song in the night. Come to us with thy tender LOVE, My soul’s delight. Unto thee, O Lord, in affliction I call, My comfort by day, And my song in the night.
O why should I wander, and not walk with thee, Or cry in the desert, thy face to see? My comfort and joy, my soul’s delight. O Jesus my saviour, my song in the night. My comfort and joy, my soul’s delight. O Jesus my saviour, my song in the night…in the night…in the night…in the nightttttt…’
Ah mih breddren, how wonderful it is to praise and worship our omnipotent, magnificent and magnanimous God! For without Him, we are nothing, and have nothing!
He is the undoubted source of all that we are and have! We are wonderfully made in His image, and also bear within us His awesome breath of life and Holy Spirit! If you take away those things you are left with absolutely nothing!
So it is essential for us to praise and glorify Him in all that we do, if we want to keep on enjoying His godly mercy and saving grace so generously given to all who sincerely seek it.
And it all segues in so nicely with our Bit: ‘Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort.’
And you know, during that same Hour of Power programme, I heard the interviewed guest mention how important that passage of scripture was to him in his men’s ministry. And friends, it’s also very important in ours. Why?
Listen to the verse that follows it. ‘Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble (tribulation), by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.’ (2 Cor.1:4)
What a wonderful method our God has set up friends: first He comforts us, so that we can comfort others with the comfort that we have received from Him! Praise His holy name!
No other supposed deity does anything like that. ONLY our great and ever-LOVING God! So why wouldn’t we give Him praise and thanks, and honour and glory eh! No reason whatsoever!
And the scholars have this to say about our verses. ‘1:3-4. Blessed (Gr. eulogetos, “well spoken of”) is used in the New Testament of God, (e.g., (Eph. 1:3). It is a term of adoration and praise.
The Father of mercies: The mercies in view here include everything from deliverance from the world, sin, and Satan, to participation in sonship, light, and life. But the force is even more than this. The stress is that the Father is characterized by mercy. (c.f. Ps. 86:5; Dan.9:9; Mic.7:18).’
Yes friends, mercy is one of the unalterable characteristics of our God, which means that it must also be one of our character traits too, if we’re to be true believers and followers of His.
Yuh see how effectively our God works in our lives. He gives us comfort and mercy so that we can then share it with others in need of them. How awesome is our God eh! Oh glory, glory!
And though I wasn’t planning to do it, I will indulge in a little spoon-feeding. (smile) Here is the scripture mentioned above from Psalm 86. ‘Be merciful unto me, O Lord: for I cry unto thee daily (all day long). Rejoice (make glad) the soul of thy servant: for unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.’ (Ps.86:3-5) I just added verses 3-4, so we could get a better idea of what’s happening.
And no my people, I haven’t forgotten. I’m getting it right this week. (smile) It’s Thursday, so let’s go home appropriately declaring our Thursday Blessings. So with plenty sincerity, spunk, enthusiasm, faith and belief, let’s do it nuh!
‘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!’
Yes my fellow believers in Jesus Christ, let’s go out today, clothed in all those blessings and show the world the true nature of Christianity, as Jesus desires of us! Much LOVE!
…we Christians are so blessed…that we don’t know what to do with all the blessings…
21 Jun 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: actions, anger, attitude, backbiting, behaviour, character, Christendom, christianity, cooperation, Corinth, disharmony, disrupt harmony, diversity, division, earthly life, embrace Jesus, encourages, exciting, extraordinary, glory, good cheer, greed, harmonious spirit, harmony, hatred, human nature, hurry, hypocritical, I am the beloved of god, in Jesus' name, individually, inner presence, Jesus, let God be God, lifts us up, Love for Jesus, LOVE Jesus, members, mind-boggling, my friend Jesus, New Testament, peace, philosophy, planet earth, Praise the Lord, privately live, problems, publicly show, pull together, reflect Christ's character, religious teaching, reproach, resentment, running things, Scrip-Bit family, serve, share His love, sincerity, souls, spiritual organism, the body of Christ, the church, the Holy Spirit, the Light, the Lord's on His throne, throne, trust, truth, Tuesday Mantra, unity, warms the cockles of my heart, what people say about me, wisdom, wonder, worry, worship
1 Corinthians 12:27. Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular (individually).
Aye mih friends and family – Scrip-Bit family included of course – welcome to another wonderful Tuesday on planet earth! The Lord’s on His heavenly throne running things, and Jesus is with us through the inner presence of the Holy Spirit! So what can be better than that eh? Absolutely nothing!
Ah mih people, Jesus is so beautiful, I don’t see how people can not LOVE Him, and want to serve and worship Him in all sincerity and truth!
Yeh friends, I truly don’t understand how people can dislike Jesus and abuse and blaspheme Him. He has the best religious teaching going, even the best philosophy for living this earthly life; one of peace and LOVE and good cheer! One couldn’t ask for more!
But such is the fallen and dark nature of our human souls that we refuse to see the light even when it’s shining all around us. But thankfully, we smart humans will embrace Jesus in all His glory and wonder and live to serve Him now and forever!
And all God’s children declared a loud and proud ‘Praise the Lord in Jesus’ name! Amen.’
And to support all of what we’ve just said, let’s declare our Tuesday Mantra with a strong sense of purpose and true belief. As one now: ‘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.’
Oh friends, oh friends, that li’l mantra so warms the cockles of my heart when I declare it, that…that I don’t know what to say afterwards! Hn!
To know that I am indeed a beloved child of God and a friend of Jesus…and can simply live this life and share His awesome LOVE with the world…well that is just so mind boggling and extraordinary!
I do hope that you, my fellow believers feel the same way, because if you don’t you are missing out on the most exciting and transformational part of your lives, since true LOVE for Jesus just lifts us up and encourages us so much!
And we’ll continue with our theme from yesterday; members of the body of Christ, of His church, because it is very important for each believer to know and understand His place and role in that most august organization.
Our Bit tells us quite plainly: ‘Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular (individually).’
Yes my brethren, we are all a part of Christ’s great organization called the church, with all that’s needed to make it great, but it’s oh so necessary for the members of that organization to pull together to do that. Listen to the scholars’ input on that verse.
’12:27. In one succinct statement, the apostle expresses both the unity and the diversity of the body of Christ. The absence of the definite article in Greek (ho, “the”) before the expression ‘body of Christ’ emphasizes character: since they are Christ’s body, their actions and attitudes toward one another should reflect His character.’
Oh my fellow believers, that last line there says it all; since we belong to Christ’s organization, our attitude and character ought to reflect that of Jesus! But does it? That’s the million-dollar question.
Unfortunately, I don’t believe that it does, or at least not to the extent that it should. If we were truly reflecting the character and attitude of Jesus as an organization, there wouldn’t be so much division and disharmony within it, none of the greed, the backbiting, the resentment, and pure hatred that exists in some parts of it.
As we said earlier, Christ’s character is one of peace, LOVE and good cheer, and that in no way represents the present day church of Christ!
And before we go any further, listen to the scholars’ description re the Body of Christ. ‘12:27. The church in the New Testament is called the “body of Christ,” and reflects the spiritual organism of the whole church on earth. When the local church is called the body of Christ, the spiritual aspect is emphasized.
Illustration: As the church is considered to be the body, so individual members are seen as parts of the body. For any church to function properly, every member must do his or her part in a harmonious spirit of cooperation with the other members. Had the church at Corinth learned this lesson, many of their problems would have been solved.
Application: When Christians disrupt the harmony of a church, they bring reproach on the body of Christ. (First ref. Matt.16:18; Primary Ref. I Cor. 12:27).’
Oh friends, that’s the problem of today’s church right there! The spirit of harmonious cooperation is sadly lacking in many of the local churches and also in the entire body of Christendom!
No wonder we’re bringing such reproach on Christ and His body, and people are leaving His organization as well as crying it down and calling it totally hypocritical!
And there is a lot of truth there, since the heathen doesn’t see or perceive us as good and kindly and LOVING people from the attitude, behaviour and character we publicly display. We behave just as badly, and sometimes even worse than them! That obviously gives Jesus a bad name and turns off the unbelievers, thus making of no effect our trying to bring them to Him.
Ah mih people, there’s a simple solution to all of that yes, all the confusion and disharmony, the resentment, anger and hatred, backbiting and hypocrisy can be avoided if we’d just implement the words of the song: ‘Let God be God! Let God be God in your life!’
Yes friends, if we’d just allow the Lord to work in our lives as He desires, most of our problems would vanish, and we’d become much more like the harmonious body of Christ that we’re meant to be.
So, starting today, right now, let’s let go and allow God to truly work in us nuh, for that is indeed the highest level of wisdom! Much LOVE!
…for Christianity to be successful…Christians must privately live…and publicly show…the true character and attitude of Jesus Christ…
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