SCRIP-BITS

Jeremiah 14:20.    We acknowledge, O Lord, our wickedness, and the iniquity of our fathers: for we have sinned against thee.
 
Ah Friends, it’s Friday…’Yes we know. Thank God for that!’ comes the joyous response. ‘Truly thank God is Friday, because that means we get away from Babylon slave labour for two big, whole days. Praise the Lord!’ Then the little band of banjo, iron, bottle and spoon and dudup strikes up a catchy riddim as accompaniment for our Friday Chant. So let’s chant it nuh people. ‘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 though it’s all well and good to chant and all that Friends, our world situation still remains chaotic and confused, in desperate need of much fixing. For as Jeremiah pleaded with God not to destroy his people a long time ago, so too we badly need to pray for our world. And it has to begin with true confession, just like Jeremiah does in our Bit: ‘We acknowledge, O Lord, our wickedness, and the iniquity of our fathers: for we have sinned against thee.’ And that’s the unvarnished truth my people! We have sinned disgracefully against the Lord in these modern times. We’ve found ways to sin that our forefathers never even dreamed of, and if they knew of our great capacity for evil, they’d be totally disgusted. They were bad, but we’ve raised the bar of sin a hundredfold. No wonder the Lord isn’t looking with much favour upon our world, raining down all sorts of natural disasters on us. And though we pray like Jeremiah: ‘Do not abhor us, for thy name’s sake, do not disgrace the throne of thy glory: remember break not thy covenant with us.’ (Jer.14:21) It makes absolutely no difference unless we change our ungodly behaviour and return to seriously and diligently worshipping the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. We need to do something as penitent and humble as Israel did in the days of Nehemiah: ‘Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackclothes, and earth upon them (dust on their heads). And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers (foreigners), and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers. And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of the Lord their God one fourth part of the day; and another fourth part they confessed, and worshipped the Lord their God.’ (Neh.9:1-3) Yes my people, we have to truly repent, not only pay outward lip service, for the Lord will bypass all the words we so eloquently spout and go straight to our hearts to see if we really mean it. And then we’ve got to change the evil ways in which we live, for talked repentance alone doesn’t cut it, our actions must also prove that we’ve had a serious change of heart. Individually, we need to say something like Bruh David did in Psalm 32, the blessedness of forgiveness: ‘I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah. For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found: surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh unto him. (Ps.32:5-6) And collectively, as a society, a nation, a world, this should be our confession. ‘We lie down in our shame, and our confusion (disgrace) covereth us: for we have sinned against the Lord our God, we and our fathers from our youth even unto this day, and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God.’ (Jer.3:25) Oh Friends, unless we truly repent and sincerely turn to following the Lord God Almighty, our days will continue to be dark and full of despair. Please, please let it not be said by future generations that ours failed them in pursuing the goodness of God. Much LOVE!…only through confession, sincere repentance and righteous living…can the tragedy that’s our world…be ever improved…be ever turned to true joy and gladness…