SCRIP-BITS

Oh Friends, I’d been struggling to find a Bit for a little while, when the Lord took pity on me and led me to Psalm 136, titled, ‘Praise for the Lord’s past and present blessings.’ ‘Thank you Lord!’ And was I ever surprised on reading it to discover that each of its 26 verses, ends with the refrain, ‘for his mercy endureth forever.’ I don’t think I’ve ever noticed this psalm before. I know the scriptures it talks about, but not the psalm itself. Anyway, as its title indicates, it deals with the good things that the Lord had done over the years, and was still doing for Israel. It’s a call to praise the Lord, while showing cause why we should. Consequently, the psalmist heartily proclaims in our Bit: ‘O Give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.’ And that’s an undisputable truth Friends! The writer of Psalm 106 also calls on us to ‘Praise ye the Lord. O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. Who can utter (express) the mighty acts of the Lord? Who can show forth all his praise?’ (Ps.106:1-2) Well the author of Psalm 136 aspires to do just that, as he goes on to describe the Lord as ‘The God of gods: The Lord of lords: To him who alone doeth great wonders: To him that by wisdom made the heavens: To him that stretched out the earth above the waters: To him that made great lights: The sun to rule by day: The moon and stars to rule by night.’ (Ps.136:2-9) Now just imagine a powerful, sweet voiced soloist singing those sentiments, then being answered after every verse by a bubbling, enthusiastic congregation, in full voice themselves: ‘for his mercy endureth for ever.’ Oh Friends, what an outpouring of joy that would cause in heaven! That would only cause His mercy to increase. And believe me people, the Lord’s mercy does endure forever. Throughout the Good Book, from Genesis to Revelation, it’s continually stated and shown. It refers to God’s great and loyal LOVE for those He calls His people. He’s made a covenant, a pact, a contract with us, and it’s of the utmost importance to Him to keep it, so that He can prove his faithfulness and loyalty to those who serve and worship Him. And having described God’s general supremacy, the psalmist then turns his attention to specific things the Lord’s done for His people Israel: ‘To him that smote Egypt in their first-born: And brought out Israel from among them: With a strong hand, and with a stretched out arm (outstretched arm, mighty power): To him which divided the Red Sea into parts: And made Israel to pass through the midst of it: But overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea: To him which led his people through the wilderness: And slew famous kings: Sihon king of the Amorites: And Og the King of Bashan: And gave their land for a heritage: Who remembered us in our low estate (lowly state): And hath redeemed us from our enemies: Who giveth food to all flesh: O  give thanks unto the God of heaven:’ And all the people proudly echo: ‘for his mercy endureth for ever.’ (Ps.136:10-26) Yes Friends, by the time the congregation sings that last refrain, there would be much dancing and singing in heaven too! That’s what praising our God does. It’s contagious. It has that multiplier effect; whoever hears it just naturally joins in, which is the reaction we’d like to accomplish worldwide, per our Great Commission. (Matt.28:19-20) Unfortunately though, we’re not quite there yet, but we’re getting there, slowly but surely. The forces of good are getting their act together and stepping out to engage Lucifer and his evil cronies, fully clad in their spiritual armour, with their shield of faith out front to deflect the enemy’s fiery darts, while that great spiritual weapon, the sword of the Good Book, brings all who encounter it to their knees before Almighty God. Wow! What a bright and enduring picture my brethren, one we should all be focused on bringing to fruition! And we’ll end with a beautiful verse of scripture, as promised by the Lord, re Judah’s revival. ‘The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that shall say, Praise the Lord of hosts: for the Lord is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: and of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the Lord, For I will cause to return the captivity of the land (the captives of the land to return), as at the first, saith the Lord.’ (Jer.33:11) Yes my people, the sacrifice of praise is still most welcome in the ears of our God, so let’s take it to the next level nuh. Let’s get so contagious with praise and thanks, that those who hear us won’t have any option but to join in and further the kingdom! Much LOVE!…Praise Him, praise Him…Glory Hallelujah…He is LOVE…He is LOVE…