SCRIP-BITS

Psalm 37:7.    Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
 
Awright mih Friends, ah know is Friday, cause ah hear all yuh shouting ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday!’ from way down the street. So if all yuh so enthusiastic, then leh we sing we Friday Chant with that same enthusiasm nuh. (smile) ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’ And I’d suggest that we take the Chant seriously Friends, because we said it wasn’t easy to make it through the week, and is only with God’s generous help that we did. And the only way to get His constant, generous help is as our Bit says: ‘Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices (schemes) to pass.’ And with that Bit in mind Friends, I’m resting and waiting patiently for the Lord to tell or show me what next to write. (smile) Seriously though, if we want to be true followers of God, we need to learn to wait on His timing for everything in our lives. And as I can personally testify, His timing is perfect, never early or late, but just in time. The accounting people must surely have been thinking and talking about God when they developed that ‘just in time’ method of delivery. My people, though we may feel anxious about stuff we’ve prayed about and are expectantly waiting for, if the Lord intends for us to have it, then we must believe that it will appear when He considers it appropriate. Now that’s not always easy to do, especially with the current fast pace of life. Half the time we want stuff not even today, but yesterday. However, there’s nothing we can do about the Lord’s ways, and since we keep saying that they are higher than ours, then most likely we’ll never understand them, so all we can do is band our jaws, and accept them, holding on to the promise that He’s faithful. It’s just another way of the Lord’s to test us, to see if we are really faithful to Him. And Friends, when you wait patiently and your problem is solved in the nick of time, then you’re in such awe of His faithful majesty, that your faith is renewed and reinvigorated and you praise Him everlasting… until the next time you have to wait. Only this past week I encountered one of those situations: I had a problem I couldn’t solve, and time was running out. I obviously prayed for help, but none was forthcoming by my timetable. But as I sat at my desk one evening, contemplating whether to call a certain person, my best bet for help – I didn’t really want to, read pride – my phone rang. I almost didn’t answer it because the read out said unknown name and number, and I wasn’t in the mood to deal with any charities begging for money. However, I guess with a nudge or slight push from the Spirit, I eventually answered it. Lo and behold my brethren, it was the same person I was contemplating calling! They claimed they just felt like calling me. And if you want to simply call that chance, where God didn’t want to take the credit, then that’s okay by me, because I know that was His doing. And since He’d gone out of His way to hook me up with that particular person in my time of need, I had no choice but to swallow my foolish pride and ask for their help. Praise Him, mih people, for He’s good to those who walk with and wait on Him! Yes Friends, the Christian life isn’t easy, but if you hang in and try to be obedient, then it certainly gets interesting. So once we approach the Lord with the right desires in our hearts, those in His will, with the right motives, then we’re certain He’ll answer us, only in His own good time. That means we’ve got to sit and wait patiently, not merely twiddling our thumbs, but doing other constructive stuff while waiting for His answer in His impeccable timing. Like Jeremiah rightly declares in Lamentations: ‘The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord.’ (Lam.3:25-26) Yes my people, to be true believers, we need to surrender our souls, our lives to the Lord, then we must learn to wait on His guidance and direction. That’s the only way our relationship with the Lord will work, leading to us successfully bearing fruit for His kingdom. And above all Friends, that means to ‘fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices (schemes) to pass.’  We can’t be looking at those around us who are supposedly prospering through their own efforts, or in cohorts with Lucifer, while we’re struggling and suffering to do right in the Lord’s eyes. Remember Friends, the treasure of this world will rot, rust and dwindle away with time, but those in heaven will last and burn brightly forever. Now we do need stuff down here, but if we walk righteously with the Lord, He will provide for and satisfy all our needs. It’s when we start getting greedy and jealous and can’t wait on Him, that things go wrong. Please note the first few verses of our Psalm, titled ‘The true state of the wicked. ‘ Bruh David tells it like it is from the get go: ‘Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like grass, and wither as the green herb. Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed (feed on his faithfulness). (Ps.37:1-3) Now that last part, ‘and verily thou shalt be fed,’ is not only meant figuratively, but also literally; the Lord will supply you with food and nourishment if you remain steadfast and true. For as the Good Book promises, you’ll never see the offspring of the righteous begging bread. The problem though Friends is maturing in our Christian walk to the point where we acknowledge and accept these things without hesitation. It’s not easy, for Jesus has high principles and standards of excellence for His followers to follow, which unfortunately we’re not always able to live up to. But that’s our earthly purpose; to bring and shape our character as close as possible to His. Consequently, we need to be comfortable in our own skin, our own soul, not looking around at others with envy and jealousy, for we don’t know how they came by their stuff, and the Lord has a different path for each of His children to walk, meaning you can’t walk my path, and I can’t walk yours. That’s why the basics of our Christian lives are hope, faith, trust, surrender, patience and contentment with whatever we have at any given time, praying and expecting more, but not upsetting our souls with jealous indignation. And we’ll close with some very informative words from the psalmist, Asaph: ‘Truly God is good to Israel, even such as are of a clean (pure) heart. But as for me, my feet were almost gone (I had almost stumbled); my steps had well-nigh slipped. For I was envious at the foolish (boastful), when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For there are no bands (pangs or pain) in their death: but their strength is firm…. Thus my heart was grieved, and I was pricked in my reins (pierced in my mind). So foolish was I, and ignorant: I was as a beast before thee. Nevertheless I am continually with thee: thou hast holden (held) me by my right hand. Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory.’ (Ps.73:1-4, 21-24) Yes Friends, let’s learn from Asaph’s mistakes, read all of Psalm 73 soon, and keep walking faithfully with the Lord, He will lead and guide you according to His purpose, then bring you to everlasting life with honour and glory. Much LOVE!…to truly LOVE the Lord…is to obey Him…and wait patiently for His guidance…