10 May 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a beautiful lazy-day Saturday, be bond or free, be Jews or Gentiles, believers united with Christ and each other through faith, blessed from birth, building bridges, by one Spirit we are all baptized into one body, calming influence, Christ is the head of the church, Christian disunity, christianity, Christians, Christians are all one in the body of christ, Christians are united in Christ, Christians don't live as one body, Christians rely on Christ for guidance and strength, deepen my breath, devotion to traditions nullifies God's word, different parts of the body are necessary for it's functioning, each believer contributes uniquely to the whole, each believer is essentail for the church's growth and mission, faith, false worship, feel the heat of the sun, function as a single organism, holding on to old traditions, holy spirit, I may know you all the more, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, I want to be with you now, in vain they worship me, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus Christ, Jesus is the source of life and direction for the church, Jesus rebukes the Pharisees, keep your own tradition, laying aside the commandment of God, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, LOVE, made to drink into one Spirit, mercy, moving too far away from the old traditions, negate all of Jesus' sacrifices, neglecting the true essence of their faith, outwardly adhering to rituals, Pope Leo XIV, prioritizing human traditions over god's commandments, quiet my soul, reject the commandment of God, relax my muscles, religions and petty differences separate them, salvation, sincerity, slow my thoughts, sun-tanning, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men, Thank the Lord, thank you for this tenderness, the BIBLE, the body is not one member, the body is not one member but many, the church of Christ is one body, the first U.S born Pope, the Information Age, the people honour me with their lips, the unity of all believers in christ, their heart is far from me, truth, under the umbrella of Christ, unexplored territory, wisdom, with a great naTURAL COLOUR, you can't be contained, you hypocrites, your love both surrounds and fills me, your peace and love are present
1 Corinthians 12:14. For the body is not one member, but many.
Oh my bredrin, what a beautiful lazy-day Saturday it is in my neck of the woods! I went outside just now and could actually feel the heat of the sun on my face! Wow! And that’s a big something in these northern climes, when, at this time of year, you can actually feel the heat of the sun. I guess a lot of the fair skinned populace will be out sun-tanning today, to get some much-needed colour on their ever so fair skin. (smile) It’s a good thing I don’t need to do that, because I’ve been blessed from birth with a great natural colour. Thank the Lord!
But enough of whatever that is, let’s get around to offering up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer with the utmost of sincerity and truth. As one voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
And as always, if your prayer was sincere, you’ll soon be on the receiving end of some of the best calming influence in the universe; that of our great God! And by now you all know that a new Pope was recently appointed, a U.S. Cardinal who took the name of Leo XIV. And I was most surprised that Brother Donald did not claim he orchestrated that move. But he was on his good behaviour and merely said that it was a great honour to have the first U.S born Pope appointed on his watch.
Surprisingly too, the old men Cardinals’ Club only took a little more than a day to come to a decision. I don’t know if its ever been done so quickly, what with all the politicking that usually goes on in the election of a Pope. But the important thing is that we have a new Pope, one who seems to be on the side of ‘peace and building bridges.’ Let’s hope that He puts his words into serious and sincere action, for we need to remember that the Body of Christ, His Church, is ONE Body.’
As Bruh Paul wrote to the Corinthians in his first missive. ‘For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond (slaves) or free; and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. For the body is not one member, but many.’ (1 Cor. 12:12-14) Now what does that mean eh? Basically, that despite our race or religion, Christians are all ONE in the Body of Christ.
Or, as this commentary puts it: ‘The concept of the Church as “one body” signifies the unity and interconnectedness of all believers in Christ. This metaphor, found in the New Testament, highlights that Christians, though diverse, are united in Christ and function as a single organism, with Christ as its head. Each believer is a member of this body, contributing uniquely to the whole.’
And Bruh Paul gives an example of that to the Corinthians when he describes the church as the human body, with different parts playing different roles, but all as important to the proper functioning of the whole body. So too do the members of the church have different roles and different gifts, but they are all important to the smooth running of the church as Christ desires it. And you can find Bruh Paul’s explanation in (1 Cor. 12:14-30)
And the commentary further details. As per ‘Unity in Christ: The Bible emphasizes that believers are united with Christ and with each other through faith. This unity is not a mere physical gathering but a spiritual connection in Christ. As per Christ as Head: Jesus is the head of the Church, the source of life and direction for the body. All believers are members of this body, relying on Christ for guidance and strength. And as per Interdependence: The body metaphor emphasizes that each member has a unique role and function, contributing to the well-being of the whole. Just as different parts of a body are necessary for its functioning, each believer is essential for the Church’s growth and mission.’
Unfortunately though, we Christians don’t live as ONE body, but as several different bodies. We allow our religions and petty differences to separate us, and thus Christ’s church cannot grow as it ought to. We’re fighting each other on so many different levels, that it’s become a major setback for the church. Some churches are growing, while others are dying. Why is that eh? Perhaps too many of us are holding on to the old traditions which aren’t cutting it in this technological and information age. Perhaps too, some of us are moving too far away from the old traditions and getting into new and unexplored territory that doesn’t seem right. Who knows?
But the problem can only be solved if we, as supposedly faithful believers let go of some of our differences and stick to the real thing that binds us, that’s Jesus Christ. It’s possibly like Jesus said to the Pharisees: ‘Well hath Esaias (Isaiah) prophesied of you hypocrites (pretenders), as it is written, This people honour me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. Howbeit in vain they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots (pitchers) and cups: and many other such like things ye do. Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.’ (Mark 7:6-9)
And this commentary gives us an overview of the situation. ‘Jesus rebukes the Pharisees for prioritizing human traditions over God’s commandments, highlighting how their devotion to these traditions actually nullifies God’s word. Jesus criticizes their hypocrisy and calls them out for outwardly adhering to rituals while neglecting the true essence of their faith. He points out that their traditions, while seemingly religious, often contradict or disregard God’s commands, ultimately leading to a false worship.’
Now, might that be a problem in our church(es) today? It certainly can be. However my fellow believers, this is a time when we simply cannot afford to let petty differences and traditions keep us from uniting to become the ONE Church under Christ’s authority,. Why? Because with our disunity, right now the devil is running away with the world, and we cannot allow that to happen. It would just negate all the sacrifices Jesus made for us, making them a complete waste of time and effort.
Is that what we desire? Hopefully not. So please, let’s take some time on this fine lazy-day Saturday and ponder our individual responses to Christ’s commandments, and see how we can improve them and help make Christ’s Church, the ONE Body it’s supposed to be! Much LOVE!
…the word Christians means…being ONE…in all respects…under the umbrella of Christ…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
03 May 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a Christian life begins with total commitment, a great day to be alive, a living sacrifice, a new way of thinking, a time of renewal, a time to renew our passion for Christ, acceptable unto God, and grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, As God for christ's sake forgave you, be kind to one another, be not conformed to this world, be ye angry and sin not, be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, blindness of heart, changing your thought patterns, christianity, Christians, closer intimacy with God, conduct of the world, created in righteousness and true holiness, deepen my breath, Easter Season, embracing biblical principles, engaging in creative activities, eternal life, evil speaking, faith, flowers sprouting, forgiving one another, good to the use of edifying, greed, holy spirit, I may know you all the more, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, I want to be with you now, if any man love the world, ignorance, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus Christ, justifying, laciviousness, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, let him labour, let him that stole steal no more, Let no corrupt communication proceed out of thy mouth, let not the sun go down upon your wrath, living lives that honour Christ, LOVE, love not the world, making us righteous, members one of another, mercy, minister grace unto the hearers, Mother Nature, neither give place to the devil, neither the things that are in the world, perseverance, practical advice, practicing new habits, prayer, prsent thinking, put away all bitterness anger wrath and clamour, put off the former conversation, put on the new man, putting away lying, quiet my soul, reading scripture, rebirth, reflection, relax my muscles, renewed in the spirit of your mind, resist being poured into the mold of the world, resurrection, salvation, sanctifying, sealed until the day of redemption, sincere effort, sincerity and truth, slow my thoughts, speak truth with your neighbour, spring, tenderhearted, thank you for this tenderness, the BIBLE, the help of the Holy Spirit, the Lord's calming presence, the love of the Father is not in him, the old man, the passion of our souls, the sacrificial death of Jesus, the season of rebirth, the thing which is good, the truth is in Jesus, to align with the truth of God's word, total commitment, transform our minds, trees budding with green leaves, truth, value systems, vanity, wisdom, with all malice, working with his hands, your love both surrounds and fills me, your reasonable service
Romans 12: 2a. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind,
Oh, this first lazy-day Saturday in May is a somewhat damp and cloudy one, but it’s oh so good for lazing around! (smile) And besides, that wonderful season of spring is in the air. The season of rebirth, of renewal, of all things being made new, and once again the trees are budding green leaves and flowers are sprouting in the gardens. What can be nicer eh, especially in this Easter Season, one of resurrection, of salvation and of eternal life! That means it’s a great day to be alive, so let’s give thanks to our wonderful God for that li’l fact nuh, by offering up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer.
As one voice, in all sincerity and truth: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’ And as always, if our prayer was sincere, we can soon expect to receive a calming presence from our heavenly Father, for desiring to be with Him in greater intimacy is His favourite desire, and He cannot help but grant our wish.
And just as spring is a time of renewal and rebirth for Mother Nature, I believe it can also be a time of renewal and rebirth for us, a time to strengthen our faith, to renew our belief in Christ Jesus, a time to reignite the passion in our souls, having recently suffered through His sacrificial death on our behalf, and then witnessed His miraculous and amazing resurrection. That’s certainly a time to renew our passion for Christ. so let’s begin with this foundational scripture from Bruh Paul to the Romans.
‘I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable (rational) service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.’ (Rom. 12:1-2) Yes friends, in honour of all that God has done for us, justifying, sanctifying, and making us righteous, among other things, then we need to show some appreciation and respect by living lives that honour Him. And according to the scholars: ‘This shows that the Christian life begins with total commitment and irrevocable presentation.’
Now, the first step in this renewal of our minds is to stop being conformed to the ways of the world, which are mostly opposite and opposed to those of Christ. As per the scholars, we are to ‘resist being poured into the mold of the present thinking, value systems, and conduct of this world.’ And John, in his first epistle, tells it perfectly: ‘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.’ (1 John 1:15) It could not be more explicit than that!
Then, we are to transform our minds, transition them to a new way of thinking, that supplied by Christ and His values. And I like how this commentary explains the process of transforming our minds. ‘Renewing your mind, often used in a spiritual context, involves actively changing your thought patterns to align with truth and God’s will. This process can be achieved through reading scripture, embracing biblical principles, and setting aside time for reflection and prayer. Practicing new habits, engaging in creative activities, and even taking a break from routine can also contribute to a renewed perspective.’
Yes, it’s not easy, especially if you were deeply involved in the ways of the world, and it does take time, but with a sincere heart and the help of the Holy Spirit, that transformation can be accomplished. And Bruh Paul, as is his habit, gives us some practical advice per transforming our minds, in his letter to the Ephesians. Having talked about the Gentiles being alienated from Christ, with their vanity, ignorance, blindness of heart, uncleanness, lasciviousness and greed, (Eph. 4:17-19) he then writes:
‘But ye have not so learned Christ; If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: That ye put off concerning the former conversation (conduct) the old man, which is corrupt according to deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:
Neither give place (an opportunity) to the devil. Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to hm that needeth. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying (educational), that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day or redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: and be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.’ (Eph. 4:20-32)
And that’s the practical manner in which we go about transforming our minds and putting on the new man in Christ! And yes, it’s a lot to learn and do, but that’s why we’ve been given the Holy Spirit as our guide and helper. And please remember that nothing happens overnight, but it takes sincere effort and perseverance on our part. If we do our part, the Lord will surely do His. So on this damp and cloudy first lazy-day Saturday in May, let’s do like Mother Nature does in springtime, and get to renewing our minds and bodies in the new man that resembles Christ Jesus! Much LOVE!
…you cannot be in Christ…or He in you…unless your mind’s been transformed…and you’re a new man…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
15 Feb 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a sense of determination, a successful earthly life, a welcome sense of peace, accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, allow the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us, an eternal promise, be not afraid, be strong and of a good courage, be thou strong and very courageous, be with you now, Bible, christianity, deepen my breath, faith, faith without works is dead, have good success, have not I commanded thee, have success, heartfelt prayer, holy spirit, I may know you all the more, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, increase my awareness of you, Jesus Christ, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, LOVE, make thy way prosperous, marvel to think, meditate on God's Word, mercy, neither be thou dismayed, not following God's faithful principle, our lack of understanding, quiet my soul, recovery mode, reinvigorating our souls, relax my muscles, salvation, shall not depart out of thy mouth, slow my thoughts, snowstorm, stay on the chosen path of God, thank you for this tenderness, the Lord thy God is with thee wherever you go, this book of the law, this mortal life, thou mayest prosper, thou shalt meditate therein day and night, to do according to all the law, truth, turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, whithersoever thou goest, wisdom, you are here with me, you can't be contained, your love both surrounds and fills me, your peace and love are present
Joshua 1:8a. This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth (shall be constantly in thy mouth); but thou shalt meditate therein day and night,
And the much forecasted snowstorm for this lazy-day Saturday in the middle of February is here! Yes friends, at midday, it’s already falling out there with a sense of determination. (smile) And like the denizens of the area totally believed that it would come, for the duchess went to the grocery earlier on this morning and complained she’d never seen such long lines everywhere in the store. Everyone seemed to be out, stocking up on stuff for the storm, which the computer says would be at least 10 cm strong. It’s a good thing I’m in recovery mode, so I don’t have to go out there. (smile)
And it’s such a good time to have a lazy-day Saturday, although I just realized that it’s been ages since we last prayed our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, because a couple of the days we’ve missed have been Saturdays. So please, let’s rectify that now nuh, by sincerely offering up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer.
As one voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
And there’s something about that prayer I just LOVED from the first moment I read it! It’s simple, but contains a whole lot of emotion and longing for God. And as always, if our prayer was sincere, we’ll soon be feeling that welcome sense of peace and calm reinvigorating our souls, bodies and spirits, for the Lord cannot help but positively answer such heartfelt prayers from His people.
That’s why it’s ever so necessary, in these times of chaos and disaster to stick with the Lord God Jehovah, the One who created us and still LOVES and controls us. But to do that successfully, we have to read, and meditate on His Word, accept His Son Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, and allow His Holy Spirit that indwells us to lead and guide our earthly lives. That’s the only way to successful earthly living.
The Lord Himself spelt it out to Joshua in that first chapter when He made him leader of the Israelites after the death of Moses, and gave him the tough, unenviable task of leading His people into the Promised Land. And I believe that right now, it would do us a whole lot of good if we read, remembered and reminisced on these most provocative and productive words of our great God.
Please read with me. The Lord said to Joshua: ‘Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper (have success or act wisely) whithersoever thou goest.’ (Josh. 1:7) Yuh see that friends, it’s of the utmost importance that we stay on the chosen path of God, and not turn either way from it, if we truly desire to be successful in this mortal life.
But that’s not all. The Lord continues to whisper in Joshua’s ear (smile) ‘This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth (shall be constantly in thy mouth); but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.’ (Josh 1:8)
And our God is so good to us that He shows us how not to turn from His law; that’s by meditating on it day and night, constantly speaking, reading, and thinking on it. That way we will not stray from His chosen path and then have good success. It’s an eternal promise! And if we don’t achieve it, it’s because of our lack of understanding and following of His faithful principle: meditating on His Word and doing what it says.
Remember what James said? ‘Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.’ (James 2:17) That means you can have all the faith in the world, know the Word from cover to cover, but if you don’t put it to work, action it in your life, then it’s worthless. For good intentions are good, but they do not soothe or quiet or uplift the spirt, body or soul, only worthwhile actions do that!
But I’m chuckling here, and I do so every time I read this scripture about Joshua and the Lord. Joshua might have thought the Lord was finished after giving him those two strong verses, but he was sadly mistaken, because the Lord further reinforced them with this most beautiful encouragement. ‘Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee withersoever thou goest.’ (Josh. 1:9)
Oh my people, what a wonderful piece of scripture; one filled with such promise that even if we knew nothing else, that would be sufficient for us to have prosperity in and with our wonderful God! But for us to do our best, we need to get the whole picture and put it into worthwhile action; That’s meditating on God’s Word, not straying from His path and having strong faith in His awesome and most faithful promises to lead and guide us in the right way.
And there’s no better time to begin doing that than right now on this lazy-day Saturday. As the snow falls in quiet peace on the land, let’s turn to God’s Word and allow it to bring that same kind of quiet peace and calm to our lives. It’s our heritage as believers in Christ Jesus! Much LOVE!
…only by knowing and putting the Lord’s Word into action…can a successful earthly life be accomplished…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
01 Feb 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: Almithy god is a total God, Bible, bless the LOrd o my soul, bless the righteous, calm, christianity, Christians, contentment, deepen my breath, doing the Lord's work, dreary winter days, even the youths shall faint and be weary, faith, for his wonderful works to the children of men, forget not all his benefits, give thanks unto the Lord for He is good, gives power to the faint, God's act of saving from a perilous situation, he delivered them from their distresses, he increases strength, his mercy endures for ever, holy spirit, I may know you all the more, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus Christ, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, let the redeemed of the Lord say so, let those who love thy name rejoice in thee, LOVE, mercy, mount up with wings as eagles, neither is he weary, O Give thanks unto the Lord, peace, quiet my soul, reconciliation with God, redeems thy life from destruction, redemption, relax my muscles, renew our faith and physical energy, run and not be weary, sacrificial death of Jesus Christ, salvation, satisfies thy mouth with good things, saved from sin and its consequences, shall renew their strength, sincerity, slow my thoughts, thank you for this tenderness, the bondage of sin, the Father of mercies, the God of All Comfort, the Lord fainteth not, there's no searching of his understanding, they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, they that wait upon the Lord, thy youth is renewed like the eagle's, truth, unceasing nearness, walk and not faint, wisdom, with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield, young men shall fall, your love both surrounds and fills me, your peace and love are present
Psalm 103:2. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.
Awright friends, it’s our lazy-day Saturday, and a bright and sunshiny though pretty cold one; something like minus 13. Nevertheless, it’s so good to see some sunshine after such a long period of damp, cloudy and dreary winter days. The sun almost blinded me when I opened the blinds a short while ago, and I said to myself, that can’t be true, sunshine after all this time? But it is true, and we thank the Lord, for His goodness to us undeserving children of men! (smile) Anyway, enough prattle, let’s turn to our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer and offer it up with all sincerity and truth.
As one voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
Oh my people, that prayer is so sweet and compelling that if our voices came from a sincere heart with right motives, the Lord cannot help but answer it with a rush of peace, calm and contentment to our needy souls. Did you feel it? I certainly did. I felt that calm and peaceful feeling just washing over me, helping me to let go of any anxieties and fears that I hitherto had. Hope the same thing happened to you, for our God is a God of comfort and peace. As Bruh Paul calls Him: ‘the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort.’ (2 Cor. 1:3) And so He is!
Now, yesterday we began looking at some of the many benefits to be had in God’s kingdom, taking our cue from Bruh David’s words in Psalm 103: ‘Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.’ (Ps. 103:2) But unfortunately, we ran out of time after talking about two of the biggest benefits, forgiveness of sins, and healing of our diseases. So, let’s continue now with the list of benefits that Bruh David identifies. ‘Who redeemeth thy life from destruction…’
Now what does that mean? Well, basically “Redeeming” signifies God’s act of rescuing or saving someone from a perilous situation, in this case, from destruction. And we see it all throughout the Bible where God rescues His people from destruction. It’s a sacred promise found in Psalm 5: ‘But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest (protects, covers) 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)
And nowhere do we see that better than in Psalm 107, titled ‘God’s Redemptive Power.’ It reads: ‘O Give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy (LOVING-KINDNESS) endureth forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy; And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south.
They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary (desolate) way, they found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distresses. And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation. Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness (LOVING-KINDNESS), and for his wonderful works to the children of men!’ (Ps. 107:1-8)
Oh friends, in times of distress, when we cry out to God for help, He hears and answers. Meanwhile, ‘In the New Testament, “redemption” refers to the act of being saved from sin and its consequences through the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ, essentially “buying back” humanity from the bondage of sin by paying the price through his blood on the cross, allowing reconciliation with God and the possibility of eternal life; this is considered the central act of salvation in Christianity.’ And Bruh Paul puts it thus to the church at Ephesus: ‘In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace.’ (Eph. 1:7)
And when we come to the next benefit; ‘who crowneth thee with (LOVING-KINDESS) and tender mercies;’ (Ps. 103:4b) it all dovetails very nicely, because when the Lord redeems us from our distresses, be they sins or physical disasters, He also crowns us with His awesome grace, favour and mercy. One is a natural part of the other. He won’t simply redeem us then leave us to our own designs. No way! Our God does everything in totality. And this next benefit tells it exactly like it is: ‘Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.’ (Ps. 103:5)
The Lord gives us good food to eat, when we’re hungry, like He gave the Israelites manna in the wilderness for forty years, and also puts good words in our mouths, from His Word. The two of them combine to renew both our physical and spiritual selves. As Isaiah says in these well-known verses: ‘Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.
He giveth power to the faint (weak); and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint.’ (Is. 40:28-31)
Oh my fellow saints, on this lazy-day Saturday, the first day of February 2025, let’s take time to ponder all that we’ve said and allow it to renew both our faith and our physical energy, so that we can mount up with wings as eagles, and not grow weary in doing the Lord’s work! Much LOVE!
…Almighty God is a total God…in Him… EVERYTHING can be found for living life…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
11 Jan 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a chain reaction of problems, a culture of lies, a perfect lazy-day Saturday, agreed to tempt the Spirit of the Lord, Ananias And Sapphira, Ananias hearing these words fell down, better is it that thou shouldest not vow, Bible, breathed his last, bright sunshine reflecting off new snow, broken promises, carried out and buried him, Christian, christianity, communal living, deceitful purposes, deepen my breath, delay not to pay it, dishonesty, downfall of a society, evil behaviour, evil deeds, faith, gave up the ghost, get out of control, God has no pleasure in fools, great fear came on all them that heard these things, great fear came upon all the church, holy spirit, I may know you all the more, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus Christ, kept back part of the price, laid it at the apostles' feet, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, Lord I want to be with you now, LOVE, making insincere promises, mercy, negative consequences of lying, pay that which thou hast vowed, poetic justice, quiet my soul, relax my muscles, scheming world, she fell down instantly, sincerity and truth, Sir Walter Scott, slow my thoughts, snow looks beautiful but can be very treacherous, sold a possession, suffer that kind of fate, than thou shouldest vow and not pay, thank you for this tenderness, the gospel truth, the Lord's calming presence, to lie to the Holy Ghost, to manifest the peace He's promised, truth, ungodliness, upon as many as heard these things, wake us up to reality, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive, when thou vowest a vow unto God, why hath Satan filled thine heart, wisdom, yielded up the ghost, you can't be contained, you have not lied unto men but unto the Holy Ghost, your love both surrounds and fills me
Acts 5:11. And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things.
And it’s a perfect lazy-day Saturday friends! A dry day, with bright sunshine reflecting off of new snow. What could be more beautiful? Excellent staying home and being lazy weather too. However, if you must go out, please remember that though the snow looks beautiful, it can be very treacherous once you get involved in it. Just like a … I was about to use a comparative example, but took it back, because our women readers would definitely not be pleased with it. (smile)
Anyway, let’s get down to business, and offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer with all sincerity and truth. As one voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
And as always, if our prayer was sincere and heartfelt, we can soon feel the Lord’s calming presence flowing in and through us to manifest the peace that He’s so faithfully promised. And talking about promises, I want to revisit our Bit from yesterday where Cousin Sol, as the Preacher in Ecclesiastes warned us about making insincere promises both to God and man. ‘When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer (delay) not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed. Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay.’ (Eccl. 5:4-5)
And that’s the gospel truth friends! It’s so much better if we don’t make promises, than make them and break them. And it’s something that our fraudulent and scheming world ought to pay attention to. However, that would not serve their deceitful and cunning purposes. But for us who believe, there’s a story in the bible that proves just how frightful and deadly broken promises and lies can be. It was in the early days of the church when the believers were living communally, and some were selling their valuables and contributing to the upkeep of the community.
The Bible, the Book of Acts, recounts it thus: ‘But a certain man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a possession, And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to (aware of) it, and brought a certain part of it, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.’ (Acts 5:1-2) They behaved like, or implied that what they’d given was the full price of the land. But little did they know that the Holy Spirit was working.
And the Bible continues: ‘But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power (control)? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto the Holy Ghost.’ (Acts 5:3-4) In other words, Peter was saying, it was your money, and it wasn’t stipulated that you give all of it, you could have given how much ever you wanted. You didn’t have to lie.
Oh friends, yuh see, when we lie unto men, we are also lying unto God, for He sees, knows and controls all from His high heaven. And if you don’t believe me, then listen to the remainder of this story. ‘And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost (breathed his last): and great fear came on all them that heard these things. And the young men arose, wound (wrapped) him up, and carried him out, and buried him.’ (Acts 5:5-6)
Ah mih people, our omnipotent God can certainly move in mysterious and mighty ways! I hope that will be a lesson to many of us who have become caught up in the lying and deceitful ways of this evil and ungodly world. But the best part of the story is yet to come. The Bible says: ‘And it was about the space of three hours after, when his wife, not knowing what was done, came in. And Peter answered unto her, Tell me whether ye sold the land for so much? And she said, Yea, for so much.
Then Peter said unto her, How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt (test) the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband are at the door, and shall carry thee out. Then fell she down straightway (instantly) at his feet, and yielded up the ghost (breathed her last): and the young men came in, and found her dead, and carrying her forth, buried her by her husband. And great fear upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things.’ (Acts 5:7-11)
Now that’s what we’d call poetic justice! Oh, how I wish many more of us would suffer that kind of fate when we do the evil deeds we do, so that it could be a lesson to others. It brings to mind this quote from Marmion, a play by Sir Walter Scott, written in 1808, which says: “Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive” It’s often used to describe the negative consequences of lying and how it affects people’s lives.
And this commentary further explains: ‘The quote’s meaning is that when someone acts dishonestly, they start a chain reaction of problems that can eventually get out of control. The “tangled web” metaphor compares the act of lying to a spider spinning its web. If the web gets tangled, the points don’t line up properly, and the web becomes a mess.’
And so does our lying and deceitfulness! Remember, our actions don’t only affect us, but also many of the people around us. So please allow the story of Ananias and Sapphira to wake us up to the reality of what our ungodliness and evil behaviour can do to those around us. Much LOVE!
…a culture of lies and broken promises…will eventually cause the downfall of a society…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
07 Dec 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adore you, asking nothing of yoy, await all things from you, be not as the hypocrites are, Bible, christianity, commune with the Father, contented in the Lord, deep inside your soul, deepen my breath, departed into a solitary place and prayed, distractions, divine aura, enter into thy closet, frail creations, holy spirit, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, I want to be with you now, if you don't use it you'll lose it, in the depths of our being, in the morning, increase my awareness of you, Jesus Christ, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, LOVE, mercy, not fixed on ourselves, on street corners, our prayer may tend to your glory, peaceul frame of mind, pray always, pray to thy Father in secret, pray without ceasing, prayer, prayer gets us in contact with God, prayer keeps us connected to God, praying in the synagogues, quiet my soul, relax my muscles, release the tensions, salvation, shutting out this evil world, sincerity, slow my thoughts, spending quiet time with God, teach our souls to remain silent, Teach us O God, thank you or this tenderness, that deep and simple prayer, that I may know you all the more, that silent language that says all things, that they may be seen of men, the accomplishment of your will, the Christian's lifeline to God, the everyday world, the invigorating light of the rising sun, the presence of God, the true state of our prayer lives, through prayer and quiet time, thy Father shall reward thee openly, truth, which says nothing and experiences everything, which specifies nothing and includes everything, wholly directed to you, wisdom, you can't be contained, your love both surrounds and fills me, your peace and love are present
Mark 1:35. And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he (Jesus) went out, and departed into a solitary (deserted) place, and there prayed.
And then it was our favourite day; lazy-day Saturday, where we can generally do whatever we please, whenever we please. Now isn’t that a good feeling? It surely is, especially when outside looks dark and gloomy with snow on the ground, and more promised this afternoon. We’ve entered that time of year, when you don’t leave home unless you must! And that suits me just fine. (smile)
I’m sorry for those who have to trudge around in the sludgy, dirty white stuff shopping for presents and other Christmas needs or wants. Thankfully, I’ve outgrown that kind of activity. Now, the only present I give is money, you go and do what you want with it. No more of this running around trying to figure out what to buy for whom, and then they either don’t like it, or it doesn’t fit, or some such negative occurrence.
Anyway, enough of the Christmas foolishness, let’s turn to more serious matters, like offering up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer. As one voice, in all sincerity and truth: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
Now that ought to put us in a very peaceful and contented frame of mind. Of course! For, getting intimate with the Father, or going deeper in His presence is certainly uplifting and soul cleansing. And surprisingly, this past week I’ve read and listened to a number of things that emphasized the great importance of going deeper into the presence of God, getting to know Him more intimately, because that’s what true Christianity is about; a deeper and more intimate relationship with our Maker and Saviour.
And the best way to do that is through prayer and quiet time with Him. Unfortunately though, not many of us realize how important time spent with God is, just sitting quietly in His presence, and letting Him flow over and into us. It’s like that Prayer of the Ages, we said a few days ago, which was attributed to Evelyn Underhill (1875-1941).
So please pray it with me again: ‘Teach us, O God, that silent language which says all things. Teach our souls to remain silent in Your presence; that we may adore You in the depths of our being, and await all things from You, while asking of You nothing but the accomplishment of Your will. Teach us to remain quiet under Your action and produce in our souls that deep and simple prayer which says nothing and experiences everything, which specifies nothing and includes everything. Do pray in us, that our prayer may even tend to Your glory, and our desires and intentions may not be fixed on ourselves, but wholly directed to You.’
Yes my people, there’s nothing like being in the Lord’s presence and just experiencing His majesty and the divine aura that emanates from Him. It’s like sitting quietly with a treasured friend, looking at the glorious colours of the setting sun above the horizon, or being awakened by the brash, sparkling and invigorating light of the rising sun! It all gets to a place deep inside your soul. That’s how spending quiet time with God ought to affect us. And it’s obvious we cannot accomplish this in a room full of people or with the many raucous noises of today’s world intruding into that special time.
It’s like Jesus advised us: ‘And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites (pretenders) are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet (inner room), and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.’ (Matt. 6:5-6)
Oh friends, prayer can really be made anywhere at any time, although as Jesus said not simply to be seen by men and thought of as being so holy and righteous. But getting deep into the presence of God can only be accomplished in a quiet space, with little or no distractions. And technically speaking, if we are serious about our spiritual growth, we all ought to have a quiet space where we can meet with the Father in prayer and worship, thus shutting out the evil world. And furthermore, as a believer in Christ Jesus, prayer is one of, if not the most important aspect of our faith, for it’s in prayer that we are renewed and refreshed, and release the tensions of the everyday world.
And you cannot find a better example of a rich prayer life than that of Jesus. Although He was God Himself, nonetheless, as a man, He recognized the importance of staying in close touch with His heavenly Father and made time to do so. There are several instances throughout the gospels where it says He went away by himself to pray. But this one from the gospel of Mark, shows how truly dedicated to prayer Jesus was. ‘And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he (Jesus) went out, and departed into a solitary (deserted) place, and there prayed.’ (Mark 1:35)
Yuh see that friends, even before day break, Jesus got up and went to a quiet place to commune with the Father, to get guidance and directions for the day ahead. Now, if the Son of God could need prayer so badly, who are we, his mere finite and frail creations not to need it eh? Oh my fellow saints, prayer is the Christian’s lifeline to God, and if we don’t use it, then we’ll eventually lose it. So please, this lazy-day Saturday is as good a time as any to go into our closets and ponder with God, the true state of our prayer lives. Much LOVE!
…pray always…pray without ceasing…for prayer gets us in contact with God…and also keeps us connected to Him…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
09 Nov 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: abominations, all these things shall be added unto you, become more intimate with God, Bible, busy society, called by by my name, christianity, crash, deepen my breath, diligently, draw nigh to God, drowning in an evil world, eternal life, eternal source of joy, faith, forgive their sin, free will, god, God is always near, God is just a prayer away, God's omnipresence, he will draw nigh to you, heal their land, hear from heaven, heartfelt prayer, holy spirit, humble themselves, I love them that love me, if my people, in our daily lives, increase my awareness of you, intimacy, Jesus Christ, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, light of the world, like chickens with our heads cut off, LOVE, mercy, none doeth good, perish. on the open stormy sea, pray, put it into practice, quiet my soul, relax my muscles, remember God's marvellous works, repentnace, rudderless, rushing around, salt of the earth, salvation, seek his face continually, seek my face, seek the Lord and his strength, seek ye first the kingdom of God, Sermon on the Mount, slow my thoughts, thank you for this tenderness, the God of our forefathers, the Great Commission, the Lord is our strength, the Promised Land, they were all gone aside, those that seek me early will find me, to live successfully in God's kingdom, truth, turn from their wicked ways, weak, wisdom, with no guide or pilot, you are here with me, your love both surrounds and fills me, your peace and love are present, your unceasing nearness
1 Chronicles 16:11. Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his face continually.
Oh what a beautiful lazy-day Saturday! It’s a li’l on the cool side, but the sunshine mitigates the chilliness, (smile) especially when you don’t have to be anywhere at any particular time, and thus you can do whatever you want, whenever you want! Wow! Why can’t we have more days like those eh, instead of the constant rushing around like chickens with our heads cut off, that our busy society seems to demand?
I don’t know, but when we do get days like that, it’s wise and imperative that we enjoy them to the fullest. And having said that, let’s turn to the eternal source of our everlasting joy and give Him some thanks and praise, seek His awesome presence more deeply through our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer.
As one sincere voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
And that’s all it takes! A short, simple, sincere, heartfelt prayer to bring our heavenly Father rushing down to meet and greet us in greater intimacy, thus allowing us to enjoy His Triune presence with an intensity like never before! And that’s how we grow, how we mature my fellow believers! By getting closer and more intimate with our God, as He says, seeking Him, while He’s near…
But yuh know what, He’s always near; as near as a prayer away! With His omnipresence, meaning His presence everywhere at all times, there’s no time He’s ever not near. But He desires us to call out to Him, to want Him enough to go out of our way to seek Him. That’s why He gave us free will, so that we could consciously choose Him above all else. Then He would really know that our interest is sincere.
And there are so many scriptures on seeking the Lord, that today we ought to look at a few of them, beginning with the most obvious; these immortal words of Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount, while teaching on worry. ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:33) Yes friends, if we keep God first place in our lives, all that we need will be given to us. But like all scripture, we first have to believe it and then put it into practice in our daily lives.
Meanwhile, way back in time, the Lord said it thus to the Israelites as they made their way from Egyptian bondage to the Promised Land. ‘If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.’ (2 Chr. 7:14)
Oh my people, that’s exactly what we ought to be doing in these disastrous and chaotic times; turning to the Lord our God, seeking His face through humble prayer and repentance, that He might free us from, and forgive us of the abominations that are currently enveloping our land and world. Can’t you see that a total return to the God of our forefathers is the answer, the only way our land and world will ever be peaceful and joyful again?
Obviously not, for again and again, we allow Satan to deceive us and steal our joy in the Lord, which we know is the very source of our strength. (Neh. 8:10) For as one wise person said, Satan doesn’t want our things, he wants our joy, for once he steals that, we become weak and rudderless, out on the open stormy sea with no guide or pilot, and it’s only a matter of time before we crash on some rocky shore and perish.
Consequently, it’s of the utmost importance that we keep seeking God, His strength, grace, mercy, goodness, LOVE and compassion. That’s why Bruh David in his Song of Thanksgiving so strongly advises: ‘Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his face continually. Remember his marvellous works that he hath done, his wonders, and the judgements of his mouth.’ (1 Chr. 16:11-12) And Cousin Sol says it like this in Proverbs: ‘I LOVE them that LOVE me; and those that seek me early (diligently) shall find me.’ (Prov. 8:17) Then James puts it thus: ‘Draw nigh (near) to God, and he will draw nigh (near) to you.’ (James 4:8a)
It’s all so simple my brethren; we just have to call out to God for help with sincere hearts. He’s waiting for us to do so, because He wants to lose none of His human creations to eternal damnation. But if we don’t call on Him, then that’s where we’ll end up, breaking His heart with such disobedience.
Meanwhile in Psalm 9 – Praise for God’s Judgement – Bruh David writes: ‘And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.’ (Ps. 9:10) And that’s the gospel truth! And it’s sad that so many of us don’t believe it, therefore don’t put our trust in Him, and therefore lead more miserable lives than is necessary.
Then in Psalm 14 – Man is Corrupt – Bruh David declares (yesss!!!): ‘The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God.’ (Ps. 14:2) And what did he find? ‘They are all gone aside (turned away), they are all together become filthy (corrupt): there is none that doeth good, no not one.’ (Ps. 14:3)
Now Bruh David could have been speaking of our current world. And isn’t a sad commentary on us supposed believers, that we’ve allowed Beelzebub and his evil cronies to take so much control of our world. Whatever happened to the Great Commission that Jesus gave us, to go forth and preach the good news of His salvation and eternal life to ALL the world eh? Whatever happened to us being the salt of the earth and shining lights of the word eh?
Obviously, our salt has lost its flavour and our lights have been burned out. But it’s not too late my fellow saints, we can still turn things around if we get up RIGHT NOW and do what we need to do, so that our descendants won’t be left drowning in such an evil and sinful world as the one we now have. Let’s do it for them nuh! Much LOVE!
…to live successfully in God’s kingdom…one must seek Him…sincerely, diligently and continuously…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
26 Oct 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a forgotten word, after the image of God, and the lust thereof, anger. greed, bandied about, Bible, blessed are the meek, cease from anger, Christian, deepen my breath, evildoers shall be cut off, faith, fight the good fight, filthy communication, forsake wrath, god, hang all the law and the prophets, he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever, holy spirit, increase my awareness of you, intimacy with god, jealousy, Jesus Christ, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, lie not one to another, LOVE, Love the Lord thy God, Love thy neighbour as thyself, negative attirudes, negative sentiments, not of the Father, of the world, on these two commandments, personal desires, physical desires, put off the old man, put on the new man, quiet my soul, relax my muscles, renewed in knowledge, resntment, salvation, sanctify them through thy truth, seek those things which are above, self-interest, sincerity, slow my thoughts, thank you for this tenderness, the corruptible things of earth, the first and great commandment, the incorruptible things of heaven, the Lord's presence, the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, the pride of life, the second is like unto it, the things of the world, the world passeth away, they are not of the world, they shall inherit the earth, those that wait upon the Lord, thy word is truth, truth, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God, wisdom, with all thy heart soul and mind, your love both surrounds and fills me, your peace and love are present, your unceasing nearness
Matthew 22:37. Thou shalt LOVE the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Oh, it’s another sunshiny day in my area, though somewhat blustery, with seasonal temperatures, and the leaves are now truly beginning to fall. But that’s what fall is all about; blowing wind and falling colourful leaves with some rain. And though it’s all good when the sun shines, we haven’t seen the other part of the equation, that’s rain, for almost a couple of weeks now, although it’s been promised several times by the weather people.
And until such time as the rain decides to bless us, we’ll just have to grin and painfully bear the sunshine. (smile) And I did have a nice li’l lazy day Saturday reprieve, as I went to bed rather late this morning. But enough with the unimportant stuff, let’s get to our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer and offer it up with all sincerity and truth.
As one voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
Ah friends, there’s’ nothing better than achieving more intimacy with God, of going deeper and deeper into His presence! And that’s only possible when we sincerely seek Him, as Jesus explains. ‘Thou shalt LOVE the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt LOVE thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.’ (Matt. 22:37-40)
Yes my fellow believers, the abiding principle in the law of God, is LOVE! That’s His greatest attribute, and what should be the prevailing sentiments and emotions on His earth. But it certainly is not. For hate, anger, resentment, strife, greed, jealousy and all the other negative sentiments and emotions are currently ruling the world. LOVE is a forgotten word, and even when remembered, it’s merely bandied about trivially, with no real respect for it’s true meaning.
And with the negative emotions in prominence, there’s no wonder that our world is in a state of chaos, and fading fast away as the negatives become even more prevalent, and LOVE recedes even further into the background. And the scriptures warn us about the very bad effects of those negative attitudes.
Listen to this one from that famous Psalm 37 – Trust in the Lord. Bruh David spells it out loud and clear. ‘Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil (for it only causes harm). For evildoers shall be cut off (destroyed): but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.’ (Ps. 37:8-9)
And Jesus said it thus in the Sermon on the Mount, as He taught the Beatitudes: ‘Blessed are the meek, for thy shall inherit the earth.’ (Matt. 5:5) Yes, my brethren, the meek are those that have humbled themselves before God, have strength and power, but don’t abuse it, they can control their sinful urges, and instead wait on God’s direction to use His gifts for the good purposes He desires.
Meanwhile, Bruh Paul had this to say to the Colossians. ‘If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. 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. Mortify therefore (put to death) your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection (passion), evil concupiscence (desire), and covetousness, which is idolatry:
For which things’ sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them. But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. 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. 3:1-10)
And that’s how it ought to be when we receive Christ as Saviour! We put away the sinful things of our old life and take up the new and LOVING things of God! Looking more unto the incorruptible things of heaven, than the corruptible things of the earth. Unfortunately though, too many supposed Christians are still indulging too much in the things of the world and not enough in the things of heaven. We are allowing the things of the world to influence us too much.
Remember what Jesus said in His prayer for the disciples? ‘They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them (set them apart) through thy truth: thy word is truth. As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.’ (John 17:16-19)
Yes my fellow believers, Jesus sent us into the world to continue His task of bringing sinners to repentance, and like Him, we are NOT supposed to allow the world to instill their worldly thoughts into us, because we know the truth, which is God’s Word. We do have to dwell IN the world to be able to do His work, but we don’t have to be OF the world. And that’s where many of us are falling down in our Christian walk. We’re allowing the ungodly and sinful things of the world to seep into our souls and spirits, thus negating the work we should be doing for Christ.
Thus Satan is winning the battle over us, as John says in his first epistle. ‘For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh (physical desires), and the lust of the eyes (personal desires), and the pride of life (self-interests), 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 forever.’ (1 John 2:16-17)
Oh my fellow saints, our world is going through a very rough time right now, and consequently we are suffering more than is necessary, but we only have ourselves to blame for the terrible state of God’s great earth. For, if all the supposed Christians would get up and live more of the true Christian life, we would not be in such a dire state of tremendous trials and tribulations. And, only as we seriously stand up and fight the good fight for Christ, will things ever improve. Let’s go home considering that today nuh, in light of what it will mean for our children’s children and their children. Much LOVE!
…only as true LOVE comes back into our world…will it ever improve…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
14 Sep 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: after that ye have suffered a while, all that glistens is not gold, and forget not all his benefits, as a roaring lion, as far as the east is from the west, baubles and bangles, be sober, be vigilant, Bible, bless the LOrd o my soul, blessing, both thou and thy seed may live, called us unto his eternal glory, callous and cruel world, casting all your care upon him, choose life, christianity, crowns thee with loving-kindness, cursing, death, deepen my breath, don't save earthly treasures, faith, forget not all his benefits, forgives thine iniquities, God's awesome presence, God's benefits, heals all thy diseases, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, I may know you all the more, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus Christ, keep God first place in our lives, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, life, LOVE, make you perfect, mercy, moth and rust doth corrupt, quiet my soul, redeems thy life from destruction, relax my muscles, relax my musclesslow my thoughts, satisfies thy mouth with good things, save up treasures in heaven, seeking whom he may devour, showers us with undeserved blessings, so far has God removed our transgressions, steadfast resit in the faith, tender mercies, thank you for this tenderness, the God of all grace, the real McCoy, the sinful pleasures of Satan, thieves break through and steal, thy youth is renewed like the eagle's, to him be glory and dominion, trust, truth, walking on air, walks about, wisdom, wisdom in spades, your adversary the devil, your love both surrounds and fills me, your unceasing nearness
Psalm 103:2. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:
At last it’s our lazy-day Saturday, where we can do as we please; laze about or work hard about the house… Hn! Work hard… Not likely! It’s a day to just take things easy; to contemplate life; to consider our future in terms of our present. Although even that sounds too difficult to do today. (smile) One thing we’re going to do for sure though, is to send up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer to heaven.
So, as one sincere voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
And what more can you ask on a lazy-day than the Lord’s awesome presence in abundance eh? Nothing! Because it makes us feel light and refreshed, like we’re walking on air, we can’t do any wrong! (smile) But how can we with the Lord’s presence so strong in us eh? No way! And it’s sad that more of us don’t seek the Lord and a greater showing of His presence in our lives. Oh, how that would alleviate much of the pain and suffering that so many of us experience in this cold, callous and cruel world. But for whatever reason, too many of God’s creation shy away from Him, and thus lose the many benefits of His LOVING presence.
And we see a handful of those benefits from Bruh David’s writings in Psalm 103: ‘Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgives all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with LOVING-kindness and tender mercies; who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.’ (Ps. 103:1-5)
Oh my people, just look at the many benefits we get from associating with, from staying close to Almighty God! Why then would we ever want to go astray from His wonderful fold eh, when there’s no one, or nothing else that can offer us those marvellous and miraculous benefits? Let’s look a li’l closer at those wonderful benefits nuh. And the first one is indeed a major benefit, one that no one else can provide: ‘Who forgiveth all thine iniquities;’
Yes friends, can you imagine any other supposed God, even Satan doing that? No way! But the Lord Jehovah sent His One Son down to earth to die on our behalf, so that our sins could be forgiven. And furthermore, as Bruh David says later on in the psalm: ‘As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.’ (Ps. 103:12)
And for that mighty deliverance, done from an heart of everlasting, unconditional LOVE, all the world should be shouting a loud and grateful ‘Praise God for His undeserving goodness to the sinful children of men!’ But, unfortunately, only a small portion of us are doing that wise and godly thing.
Then there’s this other marvellous benefit from knowing and being in close contact with God; ‘who healeth all thy diseases;’ Wow! What more can we ask eh my brethren; a kind, LOVING and compassionate God who forgives our sins, heals us and showers down undeserved blessings on us? And don’t forget that He satisfies our mouths and stomachs with good things that renew our strength like the eagles do!
Why then are we so stupid and foolish to fall for the deceptive, sinful pleasures of the evil one eh? Pleasures that only last a short while and which gets us into trouble with God. Satan does NOTHING good for us, because his total purpose is to keep us on the outs with Almighty God. And the sad part is that the stuff he offers is not even good stuff, not even the real thing, but ofttimes faked. Remember, all that glistens is not gold, and that’s where Satan exceeds; in the glittering gold-like or gold plated stuff. But with Jehovah God, we get the real stuff.
And remember what Jesus said about laying up earthly treasures; because moth and rust doth corrupt (ruin) them, and where thieves break through and steal:’ (Matt. 6:19) But the wise plan is to lay up treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt (ruin), and where thieves do not break through and steal.’ (Matt. 6:20) And we do that by keeping God first place in our lives and ignoring Satan and his evil deeds and pleasures as much as possible.
But it’s not easy, however, as Peter so wisely instructs us, we ought to: ‘Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt thee in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom steadfast resist in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in (experienced by) your brethren that are in the world.’ (2 Pet. 5:6-9)
Yes my people, Satan likes to play games with our lives, but if we hold steadfast to our faith in Christ Jesus, we will defeat him most of the time. And as Peter assures us: ‘But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish (confirm), strengthen, settle you. To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.’ (2 Pet. 5:10-11)
Oh my fellow saints, being a true Christian in this corrupt and evil world was never, and will never be easy, but if we put our trust and faith in Jesus Christ, then we will have all the tools necessary to defeat the devil and his evil cronies and live the good and abundant life down here on God’s great earth, that Jesus died for us to have. It’s all up to us, whether we take Almighty God seriously or not. However, please let’s be wise and do as Moses asked the Israelites long ago, when he placed life and death before them, as well as blessing and cursing, and then advised them ‘therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.’ (Deut. 30:19)
Yes my brethren….that’s wisdom in spades! Please, let’s follow it for the sake of our children’s children! Much LOVE!
…Satan’s baubles and bangles are all fake…but God’s are the real thing…the real McCoy…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
20 Apr 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: all is vanity, all the rivers run to the sea, all things are full of labour, another generation cometh, Bible, deepen my breath, duty bound, Ecclesiastes, enjoy this restful day, enjoyment of life, eternal life, faith, faith in our hearts, god, God's awesome presence, I may know you all the more, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus Christ, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, LOVE, man returns to the dust, no remembrance of former things, nor the ear filled with hearing, observable phenomena, one generation passeth away, proper use of wisdom, quiet my soul, receive christ as Lord and Saviour, relax my muscles, salvation, shining example of salt and light, sincerity and truth, slow my thoguths, something concrete to hold on to, the ceaseless cycle of nature, the earth abides for ever, the eye is not satisfied with seeing, the fear of God, the futility of life, the good life to come with Christ, the Preacher, the sun also ariseth, the sun goeth down, the wind whirleth about continually, there is no new thing under the sun, transitory, truth, what profit hath a man from all his labour, which he taketh under the sun, wisdom, yet the sea is not full, your love both surrounds and fills me, your peace and love are present
Ecclesiastes 1:3. What profit hath a man of (from) all his labour which he taketh under the sun?
So, it’s lazy-day Saturday and the weather is cloudy…big deal! The weather can be whatever it desires, but we’re still going to enjoy this restful day after a hard week’s work! And enjoy it even more if we don’t have to go out, because that’s what a lazy-day Saturday is for; to stay home and just laze around! (smile) So with that smile on our faces and faith in our hearts, let’s offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer with all sincerity and truth.
As one voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’ And if we were truly sincere, we can now feel God’s awesome presence resonating through our hearts, minds, souls and bodies, because that’s a prayer He will always answer with alacrity.
Now, since the Good Library just opened at the first chapter of the book of Ecclesiastes, I guess we are meant to take a look at it. And Cousin Sol, writing as the Preacher, surely writes some interesting stuff. So please read with me: ‘The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king of Jerusalem. Vanity of vanities (futility of futilities), saith the Preacher; all is vanity (futility). What profit hath a man of (from) all his labour which he taketh under the sun? One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth for ever.
The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he arose. The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits. All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence rivers come, thither they return (to go) again. All things are full of labour (wearisome); man cannot utter (express) it: the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing. The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which was done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.’ (Eccl. 1:1-9)
And what does all of that mean eh? The scholars offer these explanations. ‘Vanity is the key word of the book and the refrain all is vanity its theme. There have been many attempts to translate this word (Heb. hevel): “futility, meaningless, emptiness, breath, nothingness, absurdity,” and so on. The word means ‘that which is futile or worthless, of no value or profit,’ but it also connotes that which is transitory or passing away. As Solomon observed life, he saw little that exhibited profit and accomplishment.
The word all in the expression all is vanity must not be taken to mean everything in the universe for these reasons: (1) The author’s observations are clearly limited to what is “under the sun” or observable. (2) The negative conclusions always grow out of observable phenomena as the expressions “I saw,” I have seen,” “Again I saw,” and so on. (3) Vanity is never predicated of God, God’s work, God’s revelation, or man as man. (4) Specific realities are commended by Solomon in such a way as not to be considered vanity (e.g. the fear of God, enjoyment of life, and proper use of wisdom.’
Wow! Those explanations will certainly take some thinking and meditating upon. (smile) But they do show that Cousin Sol was just not writing for writing’s sake or being facetious about man’s life and labour on the earth. And his statement that’ there’s nothing new under the sun, holds to a fair amount of truth; for the same basic things we do today, have been done from time immemorial. Like living, dying, eating, sleeping, working, being deceitful and sinful, being warlike, ungodly and rebellious, unforgiving, covetous, envious, etc. etc. We might just do them today with more deliberation or with better tools, but our general behaviour has been the same down through the ages.
As he continues: ‘Is there any thing whereof it may be said, See, this is new? it hath been already of old (ancient) time, which was before us. There is no remembrance of former things; neither shall there be any remembrance of things that are to come with those that shall come after.’ (Eccl. 1:10-11) And as the scholars tell us: ‘The ceaseless cycles of nature illustrate the futility of life. The amazing thing is that the earth goes on, but man, the height of God’s creation, passes into eternity with no remembrance.’
And is that ever true. Day follows night and the different seasons follow each other like clockwork, the rivers run to the sea, then go back to begin again, but mankind lasts but a short time on the earth, then dies, returns to the dust from which he was created, only to be forgotten with the passing of time. It’s a tough scenario to accept, but it’s the truth. And it’s a good thing that we have Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour who remembers us forever! That is, if we accept Him as Lord and Saviour before we depart this earthly life. And that’s why it’s ever so important for people to hear about Jesus, and have the golden opportunity to receive Him as their Lord and Saviour while still alive!
It’s also why we believers need to get out there in the ungodly and evil world, where people are lost in the darkness of Satan’s deceitful and lying system, and show them the light and salt that’s to be found in Jesus, through our own shining example of salt and light! If earthly life is futile, then we need to have something concrete to hold on to after it, and the only thing available in that realm is Christ Jesus, who promises salvation and eternal life! So though our earthly life may seem futile, let’s remember this is just the preparation for the real life, that with Christ right down through eternity, and we’re duty bound to help others prepare for it! Much LOVE!
…earthly life might be rough and seem futile…but it’s simply preparing us for the good life to come with Christ Jesus…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
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