Psalm 27:1 The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
Well Friends, it’s the weekend, meaning Sabbath time; time for praise, worship, fellowship and rejuvenation. Just as any machinery that runs on gas stalls when its tank is empty, so too do we stall when we run out, or run low on God’s power. And like Bruh David drew his strength from the Lord, so too all we believers ought to draw our strength from Him. Yesterday we saw that the strength referred to was not so much physical, but more mental and inner spiritual power. Today I just want to highlight a few stalwarts of faith who showed true dependence on God for their well-being. Obviously people like Moses and Joshua had that strength else they could not have led the stubborn, recalcitrant Israelites for so long. Abraham was another faithful servant who left his family home in Haran at age 75 and went out into an unknown world simply on God’s promise to make a great nation of his progeny. (Gen.12:1-3) Abraham didn’t need only faith and physical strength but also that inner power to keep his faith steadfast and true. And he got it from the promise of his God. He knew deep down that whatever the Lord promised would be fulfilled if he was obedient. So he faithfully went wherever the Lord led him, and in the fullness of the Lord’s time, his seed became plentiful and prosperous. Note Friends, that whatever we’re called to undergo has a purpose, and it’s only if we persevere to the end that we’ll discover the Lord’s reasoning. That brings us to people like Ezra and Nehemiah, who had the vision to rebuild Jerusalem after its destruction by the Babylonians. They first needed permission from the Babylonian kings to do it, then gather sufficient money, the proper people, equipment and supplies and transport it all from Babylon to Jerusalem. They required plenty backbone and belly to overcome the physical and people challenges. Nehemiah prayed to his God that the king would have mercy on him and his plans because he was the king’s cupbearer. (Neh.1:11) And he did. As Nehemiah exulted: ‘And the king granted me according to the good hand of my God upon me.’ (Neh.2:8) And when opposition came against them, what was his response? ‘The God of heaven, he will prosper us, therefore we his servants will arise and build.’ (Neh.2:20) We can also talk about Daniel and his three amigos, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. They did not comply with the king’s wishes, re indoctrination of the Babylonian culture or bow down to their idols. But when the three amigos were thrown into the super-heated furnace they came out not even smelling of smoke. And Daniel came to no harm after his sojourn in the lion’s den either. What was that all about eh Friends? It was a test of their faith. And that real and true faith in the Most High God Jehovah lent them the spiritual wherewithal to stand up to those with supreme earthly power over them. Oh my people, it’s the same for us. When we believe with a strong, unshakeable faith, we also rise to a higher level of perseverance and fortitude, and are able to withstand much more than the normal turmoil of everyday life. But of all those who stood strong in the Lord, the one that did it best in my opinion was Bruh Joseph. He doesn’t get as much credit as he deserves, both in the fields of patience and fortitude. We all know the story: A teenager living in a somewhat dysfunctional family where all his siblings dislike him because he’s their father’s pet. Then the father makes him a coat of many colours, and Joseph tells them about his dreams that signify they would all bow down to him at some time. That only brings more resentment and death threats. He’s finally sold into slavery, taken to Egypt and bought by Potiphar, the captain of Pharaoh’s guards. He’s made chief steward of the household because his master sees the promise in him, but then the wife offers him some dalliance which he refuses; ‘How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God? ‘ he tells her. He would not betray his master’s trust, neither would he do wrong in God’s sight. It’s very important to see my people that throughout all Bruh Joseph’s trials, he keeps the faith in the God of his father Jacob, and the Lord prospers him even in his servile state. He ends up in prison because of the false accusation by Potiphar’s wife, but even in there the warden notices his extraordinary skills and makes him his assistant. And even after he’s betrayed by Pharaoh’s butler and baker, he still stands tall and strong in the Lord without complaining of his terrible plight. How many of us could have withstood so much innocent tribulation eh Friends? Not too many. But the Lord had shown Bruh Joseph something in those dreams that gave him the strength and courage to remain focused on the straight and narrow. The Lord was obviously preparing him for something that needed such a humbled spirit, but that would also build tremendous strength of character. A couple years later when Pharaoh had a dream that no one could decipher, the butler remembers Bruh Joseph and sends for him. The rest is history: He interprets Pharaoh’s dream and becomes Prime Minister of Egypt, and in the Lord’s own inimitable way and His fullness of time, his parents and siblings do bow down to him. But it all hinged on him being obedient, faithful and trusting of God. That’s the only way we can ever increase and grow in our faith and walk with God. Now there are many more people who showed enormous inner strength and godly character during their life’s trials, but due to lack of space and time we can’t name them all. However we’ll close with a very apt quote from one of the mightiest; Bruh Paul. ‘I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.’ (Phil.4:13) And that’s the gospel truth Friends, so please, let’s believe it with all our hearts, souls and minds, then practice it nuh. Much LOVE!…the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song…he also is become my salvation…
Well Friends, it’s the weekend, meaning Sabbath time; time for praise, worship, fellowship and rejuvenation. Just as any machinery that runs on gas stalls when its tank is empty, so too do we stall when we run out, or run low on God’s power. And like Bruh David drew his strength from the Lord, so too all we believers ought to draw our strength from Him. Yesterday we saw that the strength referred to was not so much physical, but more mental and inner spiritual power. Today I just want to highlight a few stalwarts of faith who showed true dependence on God for their well-being. Obviously people like Moses and Joshua had that strength else they could not have led the stubborn, recalcitrant Israelites for so long. Abraham was another faithful servant who left his family home in Haran at age 75 and went out into an unknown world simply on God’s promise to make a great nation of his progeny. (Gen.12:1-3) Abraham didn’t need only faith and physical strength but also that inner power to keep his faith steadfast and true. And he got it from the promise of his God. He knew deep down that whatever the Lord promised would be fulfilled if he was obedient. So he faithfully went wherever the Lord led him, and in the fullness of the Lord’s time, his seed became plentiful and prosperous. Note Friends, that whatever we’re called to undergo has a purpose, and it’s only if we persevere to the end that we’ll discover the Lord’s reasoning. That brings us to people like Ezra and Nehemiah, who had the vision to rebuild Jerusalem after its destruction by the Babylonians. They first needed permission from the Babylonian kings to do it, then gather sufficient money, the proper people, equipment and supplies and transport it all from Babylon to Jerusalem. They required plenty backbone and belly to overcome the physical and people challenges. Nehemiah prayed to his God that the king would have mercy on him and his plans because he was the king’s cupbearer. (Neh.1:11) And he did. As Nehemiah exulted: ‘And the king granted me according to the good hand of my God upon me.’ (Neh.2:8) And when opposition came against them, what was his response? ‘The God of heaven, he will prosper us, therefore we his servants will arise and build.’ (Neh.2:20) We can also talk about Daniel and his three amigos, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. They did not comply with the king’s wishes, re indoctrination of the Babylonian culture or bow down to their idols. But when the three amigos were thrown into the super-heated furnace they came out not even smelling of smoke. And Daniel came to no harm after his sojourn in the lion’s den either. What was that all about eh Friends? It was a test of their faith. And that real and true faith in the Most High God Jehovah lent them the spiritual wherewithal to stand up to those with supreme earthly power over them. Oh my people, it’s the same for us. When we believe with a strong, unshakeable faith, we also rise to a higher level of perseverance and fortitude, and are able to withstand much more than the normal turmoil of everyday life. But of all those who stood strong in the Lord, the one that did it best in my opinion was Bruh Joseph. He doesn’t get as much credit as he deserves, both in the fields of patience and fortitude. We all know the story: A teenager living in a somewhat dysfunctional family where all his siblings dislike him because he’s their father’s pet. Then the father makes him a coat of many colours, and Joseph tells them about his dreams that signify they would all bow down to him at some time. That only brings more resentment and death threats. He’s finally sold into slavery, taken to Egypt and bought by Potiphar, the captain of Pharaoh’s guards. He’s made chief steward of the household because his master sees the promise in him, but then the wife offers him some dalliance which he refuses; ‘How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God? ‘ he tells her. He would not betray his master’s trust, neither would he do wrong in God’s sight. It’s very important to see my people that throughout all Bruh Joseph’s trials, he keeps the faith in the God of his father Jacob, and the Lord prospers him even in his servile state. He ends up in prison because of the false accusation by Potiphar’s wife, but even in there the warden notices his extraordinary skills and makes him his assistant. And even after he’s betrayed by Pharaoh’s butler and baker, he still stands tall and strong in the Lord without complaining of his terrible plight. How many of us could have withstood so much innocent tribulation eh Friends? Not too many. But the Lord had shown Bruh Joseph something in those dreams that gave him the strength and courage to remain focused on the straight and narrow. The Lord was obviously preparing him for something that needed such a humbled spirit, but that would also build tremendous strength of character. A couple years later when Pharaoh had a dream that no one could decipher, the butler remembers Bruh Joseph and sends for him. The rest is history: He interprets Pharaoh’s dream and becomes Prime Minister of Egypt, and in the Lord’s own inimitable way and His fullness of time, his parents and siblings do bow down to him. But it all hinged on him being obedient, faithful and trusting of God. That’s the only way we can ever increase and grow in our faith and walk with God. Now there are many more people who showed enormous inner strength and godly character during their life’s trials, but due to lack of space and time we can’t name them all. However we’ll close with a very apt quote from one of the mightiest; Bruh Paul. ‘I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.’ (Phil.4:13) And that’s the gospel truth Friends, so please, let’s believe it with all our hearts, souls and minds, then practice it nuh. Much LOVE!…the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song…he also is become my salvation…
SCRIP-BITS 