Psalm 37:39 But the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord: he is their strength in the time of trouble.
Oh Friends, let me apologize for a statement I made a couple days ago, re the storm that passed by our area was beautiful. And I’m doing it up front, not like the newspapers, who blaze incorrect info across the headlines, then print their apologies in some obscure or hidden corner. (smile) Anyway, the storm might have been beautiful from where I sat, in the relatively safe, secure confines of the Canadian Tire Store, but I belatedly discovered that for thousands of people to the north of the Greater Toronto Area, it was a veritable hell. Why? Because the storm brought along a tornado of F-2 strength, averaging 150 km’s per hour, which cut a serious path of destruction through the suburban area. Hundreds of houses were destroyed, many treasured possessions lost, thousands left homeless, many more without power, all in the blink of an eye. One eleven year old boy sadly lost his life when whatever he was sheltering under in a camping ground, fell on him, while several others received injuries of varying degrees. So while I sat in fairly safe surroundings, numerous others, not too far away, were suffering possibly their greatest tribulation ever. The city of Vaughan, though the hardest hit, is home to many citizens of Italian descent or background and therefore Catholic based faith, so we can be sure that the Lord’s providence was and will be very much invoked, in this their time of great need. Please, let us offer up our prayers for their safety and well-being too. It’s just as Bruh David states in Psalm 37; ‘But the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord; he is their strength in time of trouble.’ I’m positive that’s where a lot of those unfortunate folks are finding their strength and comfort right now; in the LOVING and comforting arms of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. For as Bruh David says too; ‘The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou Lord hast not forsaken them that seek thee. Sing praises to the Lord which dwelleth in Zion: declare among the people his doings.’ (Ps.9:9-11) Yes my people, that should be our modus operandi; trust the Lord in all situations, be they good, bad or indifferent, and keep praising His Holy Name. Because ‘The Lord knoweth the days of the upright: and their inheritance shall be forever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time: and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.’ (Ps.37:18-19) And all God’s people sang, ‘Hallelujah! For He is a great and mighty God! Most worthy to be praised!’ Ah my brethren, we’re back on the trail of the wicked today; those who do Lucifer’s bidding, his evil work. The Psalmist put’s it in such vivid truth: ‘The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again: but the righteous showeth mercy, and giveth. For such as be blessed of him shall inherit the earth; and they that be cursed of him shall be cut off.’ (Ps.37:21-22) Now isn’t that the awesome truth mih people! And chuh! Enough about the wicked! It’s time to encourage the righteous, which Bruh David does so well in Psalm 37. ‘The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand.’ (vs.23-24) What more can we ask eh Friends? Though we stumble, we shall never fall flat on our faces, because our God will save us from such disgrace with His mighty arm. Oh Friends, I particularly like this next section. ‘I have been young, and now am old, yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.’ (vs.25) Wow, mih people! Can any of us contradict that? Have we ever seen the righteous cast off and ignored, or his descendants begging bread? I doubt it. Because the righteous; ‘He is ever merciful and lendeth; and his seed is blessed.’ (vs.27) This corroborates vs.21 earlier on, re showing mercy and giving. And furthermore my Friends, the Lord instructed the Israelites long ago; ‘thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother. But thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him; and shall surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth.’ (Deut.15:7-8) However people, I seriously question if we are really doing that in these troubled times, when such wealth and plenty abound, but yet poverty, like we’ve never seen it before, is running riot in our world. The balance between the have’s and have not’s is surely out of sync. Too few have too much, and too many too little. It just confirms the dictum about the rich getting richer and the poor, poorer. But this should not be so mih breddren. I’m sure our Saviour is disappointed over that negative statistic. But I don’t know how to fix it except by encouraging those who have to make it a priority, a special point of interest to give more to those who lack, for the numbers are sadly out of proportion, truly unbalanced. Oh Friends, hoarding our earthly provision and not sharing with the less fortunate is not considered righteousness in the eyes of our Lord. He considers it wickedness, sin, evil doing, enemy aggrandizement. I know we can’t give what we don’t have, but I also know that many of us can certainly give more than we’re currently doing. And note Friends, be very careful of whom you give to, for there is an abundance of wolves in sheep’s clothing out there, pretending to be proponents of charity, but in fact are outright crooks and robbers, scam and fraud artists; the charity being themselves. So today, let’s think about our giving; not only of money, but time and talent too. Let’s review our whole generosity agenda, and see where we can improve upon it. There must be some way each of us can do better, thereby alleviating the rampant, widespread, ever increasing poverty that exists in our prosperous midst. In the esteemed words of Bruh David, let’s ‘Depart from evil and do good; and dwell for ever more.’ (vs.27) Much LOVE my people!…being righteous…means…being LOVING…which means…always willing to give…
Oh Friends, let me apologize for a statement I made a couple days ago, re the storm that passed by our area was beautiful. And I’m doing it up front, not like the newspapers, who blaze incorrect info across the headlines, then print their apologies in some obscure or hidden corner. (smile) Anyway, the storm might have been beautiful from where I sat, in the relatively safe, secure confines of the Canadian Tire Store, but I belatedly discovered that for thousands of people to the north of the Greater Toronto Area, it was a veritable hell. Why? Because the storm brought along a tornado of F-2 strength, averaging 150 km’s per hour, which cut a serious path of destruction through the suburban area. Hundreds of houses were destroyed, many treasured possessions lost, thousands left homeless, many more without power, all in the blink of an eye. One eleven year old boy sadly lost his life when whatever he was sheltering under in a camping ground, fell on him, while several others received injuries of varying degrees. So while I sat in fairly safe surroundings, numerous others, not too far away, were suffering possibly their greatest tribulation ever. The city of Vaughan, though the hardest hit, is home to many citizens of Italian descent or background and therefore Catholic based faith, so we can be sure that the Lord’s providence was and will be very much invoked, in this their time of great need. Please, let us offer up our prayers for their safety and well-being too. It’s just as Bruh David states in Psalm 37; ‘But the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord; he is their strength in time of trouble.’ I’m positive that’s where a lot of those unfortunate folks are finding their strength and comfort right now; in the LOVING and comforting arms of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. For as Bruh David says too; ‘The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou Lord hast not forsaken them that seek thee. Sing praises to the Lord which dwelleth in Zion: declare among the people his doings.’ (Ps.9:9-11) Yes my people, that should be our modus operandi; trust the Lord in all situations, be they good, bad or indifferent, and keep praising His Holy Name. Because ‘The Lord knoweth the days of the upright: and their inheritance shall be forever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time: and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.’ (Ps.37:18-19) And all God’s people sang, ‘Hallelujah! For He is a great and mighty God! Most worthy to be praised!’ Ah my brethren, we’re back on the trail of the wicked today; those who do Lucifer’s bidding, his evil work. The Psalmist put’s it in such vivid truth: ‘The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again: but the righteous showeth mercy, and giveth. For such as be blessed of him shall inherit the earth; and they that be cursed of him shall be cut off.’ (Ps.37:21-22) Now isn’t that the awesome truth mih people! And chuh! Enough about the wicked! It’s time to encourage the righteous, which Bruh David does so well in Psalm 37. ‘The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand.’ (vs.23-24) What more can we ask eh Friends? Though we stumble, we shall never fall flat on our faces, because our God will save us from such disgrace with His mighty arm. Oh Friends, I particularly like this next section. ‘I have been young, and now am old, yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.’ (vs.25) Wow, mih people! Can any of us contradict that? Have we ever seen the righteous cast off and ignored, or his descendants begging bread? I doubt it. Because the righteous; ‘He is ever merciful and lendeth; and his seed is blessed.’ (vs.27) This corroborates vs.21 earlier on, re showing mercy and giving. And furthermore my Friends, the Lord instructed the Israelites long ago; ‘thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother. But thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him; and shall surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth.’ (Deut.15:7-8) However people, I seriously question if we are really doing that in these troubled times, when such wealth and plenty abound, but yet poverty, like we’ve never seen it before, is running riot in our world. The balance between the have’s and have not’s is surely out of sync. Too few have too much, and too many too little. It just confirms the dictum about the rich getting richer and the poor, poorer. But this should not be so mih breddren. I’m sure our Saviour is disappointed over that negative statistic. But I don’t know how to fix it except by encouraging those who have to make it a priority, a special point of interest to give more to those who lack, for the numbers are sadly out of proportion, truly unbalanced. Oh Friends, hoarding our earthly provision and not sharing with the less fortunate is not considered righteousness in the eyes of our Lord. He considers it wickedness, sin, evil doing, enemy aggrandizement. I know we can’t give what we don’t have, but I also know that many of us can certainly give more than we’re currently doing. And note Friends, be very careful of whom you give to, for there is an abundance of wolves in sheep’s clothing out there, pretending to be proponents of charity, but in fact are outright crooks and robbers, scam and fraud artists; the charity being themselves. So today, let’s think about our giving; not only of money, but time and talent too. Let’s review our whole generosity agenda, and see where we can improve upon it. There must be some way each of us can do better, thereby alleviating the rampant, widespread, ever increasing poverty that exists in our prosperous midst. In the esteemed words of Bruh David, let’s ‘Depart from evil and do good; and dwell for ever more.’ (vs.27) Much LOVE my people!…being righteous…means…being LOVING…which means…always willing to give…
SCRIP-BITS 