Oh Friends, it‘s Monday morning! Wish I wasn’t the bearer of such sad tidings, but you knowingly signed up for war when you joined Christ’s multinational army of Christians. (smile) So put on your spiritual armour, mount your charger, your trusty steed, and be off to the work week battle with Beelzebub and his evil cronies. Hn, hn! But don’t worry mih people, for once you’re ensconced within the protective cocoon of our God’s armour, you’ll be safe, the enemy won’t be able to touch you. How do I know that? Because Bruh David declared it in this psalm of thanksgiving when he said: ‘In the day when I cried thou answeredst me, and strenghtnedest me (made me bold) with strength in my soul. All the kings of the earth shall praise thee, O Lord, when they hear the words of thy mouth. Yea, they shall sing in (of) the ways of the Lord: for great is the glory of the Lord.’ (Ps.138:3-5) And since the Lord’s promises are faithful and forever, it means that every generation that reveres Him is likewise assured of, guaranteed His protection till the end of time. That’s why my people, we can all draw such strength and courage from His Word and the omnipotence that backs it up. And it all leads Bruh David to further declare: ‘Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me: thou shalt stretch forth thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies, and thy right hand shall save me.’ (Ps.138:7) And all God’s people said: ‘Wow!’ (Words of Wisdom) Yes Friends, that’s what strong confidence, trust and faith in the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob allows us to boldly declare. And as the writer of Hebrews notes: ‘But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.’ (Heb.11:6) But as we also noted yesterday, such great faith has to be earned through much adversity, for faith is like erecting a building; you begin with the most solid foundation possible, then you add other levels, one at a time, first ensuring that the foundation has settled and will not shift, for that will determine how strong your building will eventually be. That’s why Jesus spoke of building His church on solid rock, not shifting sand, for he knew that the top could only be as strong as the bottom that held it up. But we’ve got to begin somewhere in our faith building process, so the Lord devised this wonderful plan that allowed the experiences of some people of great faith to be recorded for posterity as a guide and support system for those coming after. Men and women who had suffered much trials and tribulation, but had remained faithful, steadfast and true, fighting mightily under God’s bold banner and had eventually achieved great victory. So my brethren, when we read the stories of these brave, bold, faithful people, we need to know that they’re true, and have been recorded for a specific purpose; to lead and guide us, to show us the power and faithfulness of our God, so that we too can build our faith on a solid foundation, not on weak, shaky ground. Thus, when Bruh David proclaims: ‘The Lord will perfect (complete) that which concerneth me,’ he’s talking from, hard, personal experience, having been through, both literal and figurative wars with God as his guide and emerging victorious. Those experiences also lead him to make the positive declaration that ‘thy mercy, O Lord, endureth for ever.’ All of this positivism was built up over time from numerous experiences, like when he fled from Saul and hid in the cave in the wilderness, and reassured himself in a prayer of deliverance: ‘I will cry unto God most high; unto God that performeth all things for me. He shall send from heaven, and save me from the reproach of him that would swallow me up (hounds me). Selah. God shall send forth his mercy and his truth.’ (Ps.57:2-3) Ah Friends, that’s powerful stuff, and it’s one of the things that fascinate me with Bruh David; his great ability to constantly reassure himself in the faithfulness of his God, both in the good times and in the bad. Oh mih people, if we learn nothing else from Bruh David’s life, please let’s learn of, and aspire to emulate his constant communication with the Lord. To me, that’s his greatest legacy. We see it from the time he’s first introduced, when Samuel anoints him king as a young stripling, then in his battle with Goliath, and all his run ins with Saul, even refusing to kill Saul when he had the chance, because it wasn’t his place to kill the Lord’s anointed, right through to his adultery with Bathsheba, arranging her husband Nathan’s death, and the resultant family problems he suffered. Nobody went through more ups and downs than Bruh David. He certainly lived a full life, one of both sinner and saint, with the attendant suffering and prosperity, but never did he ever turn away from the Lord, such was his undying LOVE, trust, respect and reverence for the God of his fathers. My people, let’s try and emulate that faith nuh. It’s no easy task, but it will certainly do us all a whole heap of good. God willing, we’ll continue this tomorrow. Till then, let’s LOVE our God, LIVE our Faith and SPREAD His Word. Much LOVE!…for the best results in life…seek God continually…
SCRIP-BITS 