Today’s Scrip-Bit 18 June 2009 Matthew 6:14‏

18 Jun 2009 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

Matthew 6:14       For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
 
Greetings my beautiful Friends in Christ! Today seems like another one with showers of blessings, but that’s all for the good since Mother earth is starving for nourishment. Our God though, never ceases to amaze me. He’s not only a Master Timer, but also a Master Strategist. Yesterday, I planned to write a Bit on Forgiveness, but was sidetracked to the verse from Amos. Later on I discovered why. The tape of Uncle Charles’ sermon, (Charles Stanley) that I decided to watch, dealt with the same topic, and he had a few definitions that I thought were important enough to share. I don’t have the time, space or knowledge to break it down as detailed as he did, but I’ll pull it together in my own way. Oh one other important thing, I didn’t have to search for the Bit scripture either, I got it right from the sermon too. The oft unnoticed, but quite significant verse that Jesus spoke after He’d given the disciples a generic plan for praying, which we call the Lord’s Prayer. Note, His first words after detailing the prayer were: ‘For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.’ (Mat.6:14-15) Oh my people, those are some of the most important words Jesus ever spoke. They are the basic foundation for the Christian faith. If you can’t or refuse to forgive, then you shouldn’t be calling yourself a Christian; a follower of Christ. To show its overriding importance, Jesus not only includes it in His prayer to the Father; ‘And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.’ (Mat.6:12) But He also points it out to them right after, and some of His last words before he died on the cross were: ‘Father, forgive them: for they know not what they do.’ (Luke 23:34) Yes my Friends, forgiveness was possibly the biggest principle, the chief cornerstone of Jesus’ teaching. Oh, and how can I forget that it was His Father’s overwhelming desire to have us cleansed and forgiven of our sins that led Him to sacrifice His only Son, Jesus. That means if we’re to follow in Jesus’ footsteps, forgiveness must be an exceedingly large part of our nature and our walk. You can’t consider yourself a true Christian unless you’re willing to forgive. It’s not always easy, but we must pursue it for Jesus’ sake. Let’s turn to the definitions I promised. The first is Anger: Uncle Charles describes it as; ‘A strong feeling of intense displeasure, hostility or indignation as a result of a real or imagined threat, insult, frustration or injustice towards yourself or others important to you.’ I think it’s an excellent definition that seems to cover all the bases. We get angry, hostile or displeased when we feel wronged, be it true or false. Now what are we supposed to do with this anger? I don’t remember exactly how Uncle Charles classified them, but I’ll call them good and bad anger. The good kind being when it drives us to get up off our fannies and do something positive, while the bad kind is where the anger just remains in our souls, stays there and seethes, ferments like yeast in alcohol and finally turns to bitterness. Then we go around with a constantly sour, angry, scowling, bitter attitude, upset with everybody and everything. But oh mih people, that’s the worse thing we can ever allow to happen to us! It’s like acid in the plastic bottle that I’m always talking about. It might not do the other person anything, unless you get violent and attack them physically or verbally, but it’s certainly going to have a very negative and disastrous effect on you; eating away the container, you, just like the acid does to the plastic bottle. That negativity only steals your joy and Christian attitude, making your life a real hell here on earth. It does nothing to advance your maturity in Christ. On the contrary it can quite easily lead you to backslide. Remember what the Lord said about backsliders? All their righteousness shall be for nought. ‘All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die.’ (Eze.18:24) But when the wicked forsakes evil and turns to right living; ‘All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live.’ (Eze.18:22) And Friends, there’s nothing that causes us to do wrong like anger, especially the bad kind. Remember it’s one of the enemy’s tricks, to get us upset and cause us to behave in an unchristian like manner. That means, if we’re going to live a successful life for Christ, then we desperately need to control our anger; Lucifer’s negative tool. It’s not easy, especially now that our world is going through a tough time that’s causing all the negative emotions to be very predominant. We, as followers of Christ, have the difficult task to harness and channel them in good, positive, productive ways. Ah mih breddren, it’s a rough and rocky road we have chosen to travel. But the rewards mih people…Oh the rewards are fabulous! Salvation and Eternal Life with the Holy Triumvirate! Wow! What could be better? NOTHING!  Hn! I thought one Bit would suffice, obviously not, so, God willing, we’ll continue it tomorrow. Till then Friends, let’s try to keep a tight rein on our anger so it doesn’t cause us to backslide. Much LOVE!…the first step to forgiveness… reducing and channelling anger…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 17 June 2009 Amos 9:2‏

17 Jun 2009 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

Amos 9:2     Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down.
 
Oh my Friends, we’re alive! Give thanks and praise to our Creator and heavenly Father for that! Our names aren’t printed in today’s obits. Glory Hallelujah! Some may ask though, what’s to be grateful for in such a turbulent, violent, tumultuous world, where everybody’s shaking it rough? But as I keep saying, while there’s life there’s always hope; ‘And hope maketh not ashamed; because the LOVE of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.’ (Rom.5:5) Yes my people, that hope, that expectation of improvement, which is based on the promises of our God, doesn’t ever disappoint, though sometimes it’s hard to hang on to it. But hang on we must, else we’ll just end up like Israel in Amos’ time. Israel had forsaken the Lord and turned to their own lustful, selfish devices, as well as those of the heathen that lived around them. We seem to have done the same thing, hence our current unfortunate situation. Oh Friends, it’s been proven time and time again, that the Lord’s judgement is inescapable. It’s just a matter of when! As our parents warned us; ‘you can run, but you can’t hide.’ And it’s the bitter truth my brethren. Our God is patient, kind, LOVING, forgiving and all those wonderful things, but even more so, He’s a God of justice and righteousness. He could have easily waved a hand and wiped away our sins, but because of His righteous nature, actual payment had to be made. That’s why He sacrificed His only Son Jesus. And those who still insist on doing wrong shall pay. They will not get away from His justice. ‘Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down.’ Oh Friends, the Lord doesn’t joke around when coming to justice and righteousness, so if we don’t want to feel the wrath of His righteous judgement, it’s imperative that we live by His rules. And though they may be somewhat restrictive in certain areas, they’re really not onerous. Now if we want to live by the lusts of the flesh, then we might find them limiting, because He’s against having our sinful flesh control our lives. It’s the seal, the mark of Beelzebub! However, if we decide to maintain a spiritual lifestyle, in accordance with His wishes, then there shouldn’t be too many problems… Sorry, I’ll rephrase that; you will still have problems, but you will be better equipped to handle them, through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Friends, we all are made of inherently sinful flesh, so no one can escape its lustful, evil nature, but we surely can reduce its hold on us. It isn’t easy, especially when you see the wicked prospering and the righteous suffering. We all want the nice things the world has to offer, but they’re not always easy to come by. Sometimes we even have to sell our souls to the enemy to acquire those pretty baubles the flesh offers. But is it worth it my Friends? NO! The big house, fancy car, important job and social position all come with a high price tag, and don’t always bring happiness or satisfaction. There’s many a rich and powerful man who can’t sleep comfortably at night, while the destitute man who lays his head on a piece of cardboard below a bridge, sleeps like a baby. Hn! I know you’ll take the sleepless nights with the wealth and power anyway. But remember too, that wealth and power corrupt. They tend to bring a hard, harsh, unnatural bent to our souls. I’m sure you’ve noticed how people change, often for the worse, when they suddenly become wealthy and powerful. The nouveau riche immediately become full of airs and graces, become worse snobs than the old money people. It all goes to their head, making them feel ever so important, as though they’ve finally arrived in the upper echelons of society, and they adopt a flaunting, lavish, boastful lifestyle to prove it. But Friends, there are still many circles that won’t welcome certain people, regardless of their wealth and power, for tightly knit cliques, based on colour, class or creed, still exist in our society. What I’m saying people, is that we should not make the fleshly, worldly lifestyle of the rich and famous our goal. Wealth and power comes to Christians too, but we don’t need to let it go to our heads or flaunt it. We need to use it to help others. Remember, we’re only stewards, caretakers of what the Lord’s blessed us with. Our calling is to use some to live decently, do good works with some and save some for future generations. It wasn’t meant for us to waste on the vain, fleshly, immaterial baubles that Lucifer promotes. And Friends, if we don’t wisely use what the Lord’s given us, then we’ll have to answer why. There’s absolutely no escaping it. Bruh David acknowledges it in Psalm 139, where he talks about God’s everlasting presence and power. ‘Whither shall I go from thy spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: If I make my bed in hell, behold thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.’ (Ps.139:7-10) Yes my people, wherever we go, the Lord will find us, and since He dislikes workers of iniquity, and will eventually punish them, let’s take in front, before in front takes us nuh. Let’s hear, so that we don’t feel later on. Let’s obey His dictates and try to live as righteously as we can. The world’s full of turmoil, violence and confusion because we’ve not been living the way our God wants us to live. He’s already making us pay. Job says: ‘Hell is naked before him, and destruction hath no covering.’ (Job 26:6) So let’s be wise and live right, but also explain the situation to our families, friends and neighbours. Show them the error of their ways, and help them to live right too. Let’s stop worshipping the lowly dollar, and worship the Almighty God instead. Much LOVE!…remember evil doers…you can’t run, nor hide…from Almighty God….
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 16 June 2009 Psalm 73:24‏

16 Jun 2009 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

Psalm 73:24    Thou shalt guide me with thy council, and afterward receive me to glory.
 
Well hello there my truly beautiful, heaven bound Friends! Now please don’t make me a liar. (smile) Another God-given day is in the offing, either filled with brilliant sunshine, showers of blessing, or some combination thereof. But however it turns out, says loud and clear that our God is still on His throne running things, and as long as that’s the case, then all we humans have hope for salvation and eternal life. And we achieve that by simply believing and trusting in the Holy Name of Jesus. But that sounds so easy. Yes, that’s the easy part. The hard part is living and walking that belief and trust afterwards. Note, hanging out with Jesus is no joyride, it can be very rough, but it’s always interesting. He’s also promised to invest His Holy Spirit in us as His assistant. The Spirit’s steadfast and faithful nature will guide and protect us as we walk in His Name. The psalmist, Asaph said it so beautifully: ‘Thou shalt guide me with thy council, and afterwards receive me to glory.’ What more can we ask of our God eh? Nothing really. He’s promised to guide us with fatherly advice as we walk the evil pathways of this world, then, when our days here are over, gloriously receive our spirits to live with Him through eternity. And it’s most wonderful that the Lord has promised to guide us, but all guidance and advice require certain things: One must either ask for it, or have it granted, and right now advice sure is plentiful, both the cheap and expensive kind. There’s also the matter of where or from whom the advice comes. But the most important aspect is what we do with said advice. We can get all the advice in the world, both good and bad, but in the end, we have to make the final decision. No one else can make it for us. Remember, as children, our parents were always giving us advice, much of which we ignored, because it seemed too onerous, or it didn’t fit in with our plans to have a good time. But then we often paid a hefty negative price for not listening. Some of us learned from our mistakes, while others didn’t, and so kept on making the same ones over and over. I constantly told my children that all of us have been allotted a certain amount of mistakes. Those we can’t get away from, we just have to band our bellies and accept them. However, there are many mistakes we can avoid by learning from the faulty judgement of others, thereby suffering less misfortune in this sometimes very unfortunate life. An excellent example of what we’re talking about is found in 1 Kings 12. Sol’s son, Rehoboam became king after him, and the people came pleading for him to ease their burden. Sol had taxed them to death to satisfy his lifestyle. Rehoboam told them to come back in three days for an answer, then he consulted with both his father’s old advisors and the young men of his generation. The old folks told him to ease up on the people, while the young uns advocated a harsher yoke, and foolishly, Rehoboam listened to the young generation. ‘My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke: my father also chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.’ (1 Kin.12:14) It wasn’t real scorpions, but scourges that had points, and so mutilated the flesh more than whips. That advice only led to a revolt by the people, and a break up of Israel, with Rehoboam only ruling over Judah, while the remaining tribes crowned Jeroboam king. Oh my people, nothing much has changed. We still get lots of bad advice that we still follow. If anything, bad advice is more rampant now than then. It’s bad advice, interspersed with greed that has the world currently on its knees; too many consultants, too many experts, too many financial gurus who were supposed to know. But either they didn’t really know, or were driven by greed to build towers of wealth on poor foundations. And too many people listened to them, since they were adjudged experts, and fell into step with their unholy push for more. Oh Friends, in every meltdown, the real culprit is bad advice, and with every setback we turn to another expert with a different philosophy. But it’s only a matter of time before the same results are forthcoming. Why? Because the fundamental structure, the foundation of our society is not strong, it’s built on sinking sand, so whatever you put on it will eventually crumble. This begs the question of what solid foundation we must build on to survive. Oh Friends, we all know there’s only one solid, firm, indestructible, immovable,  foundation: Jesus Christ! Man’s advice led us astray, now it’s time to give Christ a chance; listen to Him, build our lives on His teachings, His Word and His way of life. Bruh David realized this way back when. ‘I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.’ (Ps.32:8) Oh Friends, by following Lucifer’s cronies in their unending quest for earthly wealth, power and lusts of the flesh, we’ve made a terrible mess of the world. Let’s start following the God who created this world and us. I guarantee that we won’t be sorry if we live the way He desires. He will NEVER, and I repeat, NEVER let us down. Friends, we’ve been given a second chance, I implore us, let’s use it to rebuild our lives successfully on Jesus. That means listen to Him, tell others about Him, and live a life that will honour Him. Mankind is kin to stupid sheep, ever quick to run to their slaughter, so it’s up to us believers to guide them to the Good Shepherd, who’ll lead them safely with His kind, gentle ways. ‘For this God is our God for ever and ever: he will be our guide even unto death.’   (Ps.48:14) That’s the gospel truth my people! So before we make any serious decisions, let’s confer with our God, seek His advice, His wisdom, and LISTEN to Him. This way we’ll surely minimize our mistakes, giving us more time to enjoy our lives, to worship, praise and glorify Him. Much LOVE!…it’s trite but true…if yuh doh hear…yuh going to feel…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 15 June 2009 1 John 2:6‏

15 Jun 2009 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

1 John 2:6    He that saith he abideth in him, ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.
 
Ah Friends, yuh think this Christian walk easy? Not at all nuh! Our God’s thinking must be radically different and far superior to our yes, because yesterday He had me riding a wave of enthusiasm with unexpected blessings, while today I’m plumbing the depths of disappointment. Hn! I don’t know if it’s simply a test or what, but He should know by now that I’m not about to give up on Him, especially since I got involved in this Scrip-Bit endeavour. Even before that, He’s run me through the ringer often enough to see my true colours. I know He’s a good God and all that, and I’m still singing His praises and giving Him oodles of thanks, but sometimes it’s just…it’s just rough and seemingly unfair. It so happens that all the dreams He’s put in my heart have long gestation periods, taking a lot of time, effort and money. And I had this one project ready to go, when Bam! The whole thing unexpectedly crashed on me. And not through any fault of mine, but through external forces over which I had no control. The trouble too is that this project looked like it was going to hit the ground running, now though, it’s not even going to leave the starting gate. But per Job; ‘the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.’ (Job 1:21) Doh worry Friends, I’m not giving up. I’ll get over the disappointment and start over again. In fact I’ve already done that, on both counts. And as Rev. Schuler likes to say, this might just be a small setback for a big comeback. Ah mih people, you have to have plenty parts if you seriously want to follow Jesus yes! And you all see that I’m trying to practice what I preach. (smile) Who knows, that might have even been His intention. Whatever though, I’m going down fighting with Him. It’s Jesus all the way! Why? Cause He’s the only way! He specified that specifically. (smile) ‘Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.’ (John 15:4) Yes Friends, Jesus cares for us, regardless of what He allows to happen in our lives. He won’t allow anything we go through, to go to waste. Whatever He allows has a purpose, even if we can’t see it. That’s where faith; the walking by our hearts and not our eyes comes in. And more often than not, it’s a difficult row to hoe. But once we realize that our God’s LOVE, care and concern for us are genuine, as He’s been saying from the dawn of eternity, or as the old people would say, since Adam was a little boy, we have to bow down and worship Him; give Him His due. And Friends, when we look at some of what we consider serious disappointments, if compared to the majority of humans on Planet Earth, ours are really minor and insignificant. We have all the necessities of life, plus some. Most of the world can’t say that. We can worship freely, without fear of persecution. Many around the world can’t do that. So in the big picture, my disappointment, though important to me, pales in comparison to many others. And talking about persecution for Christians, it’s only tonight I read that in China, this week, a believer, Shi Weihan, was sentenced to three years in jail and a twenty five thousand dollar fine. And his crime? Printing Bibles and giving them away for free. Ah mih people, it’s a sad statement that in this so called modern day and age, the next emerging superpower, China, whom the West kowtows to because of their vast consumer potential, who’s spreading their supposed largesse all over the world, (read Chinese hegemony) and who claim to have a Constitution that guarantees freedom of speech, of the press, of assembly, and even of religious belief, a Communist controlled govt. still strictly monitors everything. Hn! They’re like some of us; only talk the talk, but don’t walk it. The article also claims that though the Bible is the most printed book in the world, ‘there is not a single bookstore in China where one can buy Bibles or other gospel books.’ How sad. You can only buy Bibles in govt. approved and monitored churches. It certainly seems like Shi Weihan was obeying Today’s Bit perfectly. He ran a small Christian group from his home, under the radar of the govt’s zealous Religious Affairs administration, and did much humanitarian work in the poor, rural countryside, which made him realize that Bibles were very scarce. To combat this scarcity, he enlisted some friends who ran a printing shop in Beijing and they began printing Bibles and giving them away. Publishing them though was considered a crime since only approved publishers are allowed to publish stuff in China. His application for approval was denied. But all praise to our God my Friends, for He gets His word out there under any circumstances. The more they try to subvert it, the more it prospers. Shi’s lawyer’s licence was even suspended, which led his wife to have doubts about an appeal, because no other lawyer might take the case since it’s religious, and they saw what happened to the original lawyer. Now Friends, that’s a perfect example of walking as Jesus walked, and most of our problems pale before that. But problems are problems, in spite of their size or complexity, and we all have some to overcome. However, let’s do like Jesus nuh, unselfishly consider others first and ourselves last. ‘For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow in his steps.’ (1 Pet.2:21) Let’s fervently pray for people like Shi Weihan; staunch believers who are trying to walk in Jesus footsteps, to spread the Word, but are being persecuted and oppressed by Lucifer’s cohorts. Sadly, there are many other parts of the world where Christians are suffering for their beliefs, and the surest way for us to help them is by offering up much heartfelt prayer for them. So please, let’s make that a priority, for if the situation was reversed, we’d sure want them to pray for us. And that’s what Jesus would do too. Much LOVE!…walk right and pray much…that’s the Jesus way…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 14 June 2009 Psalm 97:12‏

14 Jun 2009 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

Psalm 97:12    Rejoice in the Lord, ye righteous; and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.
 
Oh Friends, oh Friends, our God is a most wonderful God! He’s exceedingly good too! Glory Hallelujah! Please don’t ever doubt that. Remember yesterday I mentioned a couple situations in my life that I couldn’t solve and finally surrendered them to Him? Well mih people, lo and behold, another piece of the puzzle was slotted in today, through His great mercy, and with perfect timing too. As if I expected anything different eh? (smile) And the beauty of it is that it came from a totally unexpected source. Not by His might or power, but by His awesome Spirit, He turned a situation that once looked hopeless, into one that’s filled with promise. And I thank Him most sincerely for that victory! But Friends, it might never have happened if I hadn’t admitted my inability to solve the problem and left it completely in His hands. It’s certainly an occasion for rejoicing and giving thanks. As the Psalmist joyfully declares; ‘Rejoice in the Lord, ye righteous; and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.’ Ah Friends, how can I not be grateful and give thanks and praise His Holy name after He’s been so good to me eh? But that is what’s wrong with many of us my people; we get good tidings and breaks through the Lord’s incredible workings, but we’re not thankful or grateful. We just say chuh, and shrug it off, like we’re entitled to it. But when the shoe’s on the other foot, when the bucket bottom drop out and we don’t know our A from our E, we quick to run and bawl; ‘Oh God, help me nuh!’ And from the eternal wellspring of His LOVING kindness, He usually does. But when things settle down, we forget about Him and revert to our own way, until the mark burst on us again. Oh my people, it’s at crucial times like these, when everything is topsy-turvy, unsettled and confused that we need to stop and seriously look deep inside ourselves, consider our ways, do some intensive soul searching, find out where and why we’re not obeying the Lord’s dictates, stop fooling ourselves and truly admit our shortcomings, to us, and to our God. Wow! A real Bruh Paulian sentence! Like machines, we too need periodic maintenance. Every so often we need to take inventory of ourselves, especially our spiritual selves. One of the major shortcomings of our world today is that not enough people accentuate their spirituality, don’t place enough emphasis on it. We ought to give it a rather high priority in our lives, especially we believers, who claim to be spiritual beings merely existing in a physical body. In light of that, it’s essential to understand who we are in a spiritual sense, and how far along the spiritual continuum we are, for Christians can never stop learning, growing and expanding their sense of spiritual wonder and excitement. Yes friends, excitement and wonder are two essential aspects of Christian living. To be truly alive, we need to be excited about Christ: about all that He’s done for us, and promised to do, also be amazed and wonder at all the marvellous, seemingly impossible things our God has done in creating this beautiful world and maintaining it successfully for so long. As a quote from one Bernard. S. Raskas states: ‘Develop an expanding sense of wonder at the world, at yourself, at God. The world will never starve for wonders – only for the want of wonder.’ And that’s so very true my people. Wonders are constantly happening in our world, it’s just that we don’t take time to appreciate them; we don’t stop often or long enough to smell the roses. And contrary to what some might think, appreciating the wonders of our world is a part of being thankful and reverent to our God, who created them all. That’s why the Psalmist advises us to, ‘Rejoice in the Lord ye righteous: for praise is comely for the upright.’ (Ps.33:1) Oh Friends, how can we claim to be followers of Jesus and don’t have that brilliant flame burning in us eh? That flame that just makes us always want to do His bidding and constantly sing His praises, while eliciting  tremendous joy and thankfulness in our hearts, minds and souls! My people, we need to develop that burning desire to please, worship, praise, thank and enjoy our God. That’s what life is all about: living for Jesus! And just being mediocre, luke warm or moderately enthusiastic is unacceptable. It won’t win any souls for Christ. What wins souls is enthusiasm laced with truth of the Word and a lifestyle to match! Look around and you’ll notice that all Lucifer’s devotees are go-getters. They don’t sit around and wait for things to happen, or come to them; they make things happen, though they be evil. We also need to be go-getters for Christ, and that only comes from an unfailing belief and trust in His purpose, His promises and His sincerity. That’s why men of great faith were always joyful and zealous. They had such a great LOVE for God that it made them want to sing and dance, give praise and thanks. As Bruh David says: ‘I will extol thee, O Lord; for thou hast lifted me up, and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me…Sing unto the Lord, O ye saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.’ (Ps.30:1,4) And we must mention that man of unquenchable faith and zeal, Bruh Paul. ‘Rejoice’ was one of his favourite words. ‘Finally my brethren, rejoice in the Lord.’ (Phil.3:1) ‘But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly…’ (Phil.4:10) And his most famous bit of rejoicing advice: ‘Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.’ (Phil.4:4) My Friends, that’s the lesson for the day. And yuh know what? It’s so nice, we’ll say it twice. ‘Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.’ Much LOVE my brethren!…today’s mantra…rejoice always…rejoice always…rejoice always in the Lord…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 13 June 2009 1 Peter 5:7‏

13 Jun 2009 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

1 Peter 5:7     Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
 
Oh my wonderful Friends in Christ, truer words have seldom been written, and on such a beautiful spring time Saturday, let’s give our God a rousing cheer for His awesome LOVE and kindness. All together now: ‘Praise Him, Praise Him; Glory Hallelujah, He is LOVE: Yes He is LOVE!’ Ah my people, didn’t that feel good? It certainly got the adrenaline flowing in the right direction. Anyway, today we’re continuing with the no fret, no worry topic we began yesterday. I know that everyday some new, unexpected problem rears its ugly head and complicates our lives more than we can ask or imagine. But let’s stop for a moment and contemplate the numerous times problems, both large and small have cropped up in our lives, and though at first they seemed overwhelming and insurmountable, yet we dealt with them successfully. The point is that when unexpected difficulties arise, we tend to become agitated and fearful, thinking they’re so huge and perplexing that we can’t solve them. But that’s not true; it’s the element of surprise that the problems bring with them that often floors us, and through spur of the moment, anxious thinking, we immediately believe we’re done like dinner. I’m sure though, that most of us have solved far bigger problems than those facing us now, and if we haven’t, there’s absolutely no need to think we can’t. Why? Because as Bruh Paul says; ‘For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound mind.’ (2 Tim.1:7) And that’s the gospel truth Friends! Neither Bruh Paul nor I will lie to you. (smile) But when the problems arise, we first need to stop for a moment, take some deep breaths, then consider them with a clear, unconfused mind. Take charge: Come up over them, rather than under them: Subjugate them, instead of letting them subjugate you. Lay them out in an orderly fashion, or break them down into their smallest components, then deal with each separately. Keep one thing in mind; the Lord made a balanced world; for every plus, there’s a minus, so for every problem, there’s a solution. It’s just that sometimes we’re so busy being fearful, that we can’t bring our full faculties to bear on them, or those that are really too big for us to solve, we don’t take them to God in prayer. Oh my people, when any problem crops us, big or small, whether we can handle it or not, the first place we must turn is to our God. As Peter says: ‘Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.’ My brethren, those are words we need to commit to our hearts and minds, for they are not only written on stone and paper, but even more importantly, in blood; the innocently shed blood of Jesus Christ, whom our God sacrificed on the cross to cleanse us of our sins. Now tell me why He would make such an unnatural sacrifice; forsaking His only Son, for a bunch of ungrateful sinners, if He didn’t care deeply for those ingrates? I don’t know why it’s so hard for people these days to accept kindness. The human animal has become so distrustful, so scared of each other and our motives, that we look on any sudden generosity or kindness with scepticism and doubts, but we never seem to doubt the selfishness, anger or abuse. If you go around laughing or spreading happiness, people think you’re crazy. But be spiteful and angry, and you’re considered normal. Oh Friends, we’ve got to change that negative mindset; the sooner the better. It’s a very unhealthy attitude that only serves to keep us in bondage to fear, mistrust, doubt and the other negatives that are the express tools of Lucifer. Jesus didn’t die that horrible death so we should live afraid, but to live expectantly, with confidence. And that strength and safety only comes from putting our lives in the Father’s hands, totally committing ourselves to Him, surrendering all our fears, doubts and anxieties to Him. That’s His job in our partnership; to help us conquer our inadequacies. ‘Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established.’ (Prov.16:3) Yes my people, we won’t be really successful in any endeavour until we commit whatever we do to our God, for it is from Him that every good thing springs. Jesus emphasized it when He said: ‘Take no thought for your life, what ye shall drink or eat…for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.’ (Mat.6:25-34) Open the Good Book and read it Friends, and stop worrying about what you have or don’t have. Oh Friends I’ve been concerned about certain things recently which I couldn’t seem to solve, so finally I said, awright Lord, they’re in your hands now and stopped worrying. And believe me people, I’m seeing them solved now, bit by bit. Not always the way I’d prefer, but not negatively, and in rather timely fashion too. If there’s one thing I can personally testify to very strongly, it’s God’s perfect timing. And not only now, but from way back when. Oh people, there’s only one sure way to solve a problem; take it to the Lord in prayer. And in Bruh David’s famous words: ‘Fret not thyself because of evil doers, 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.’ (Ps.37:1-3) Friends, that’s some of the best advice we’ll ever get. Let’s heed it nuh. Much LOVE!…the best way to conquer a problem…pray on it…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 12 June 2009 Psalm 29:11‏

12 Jun 2009 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

Psalm 29:11    The Lord will give strength unto his people; the Lord will bless his people with peace.
 
Ah Friends, we normally live in a topsy-turvy world at best, but with all these recent crises taking place world wide, Planet Earth has become downright loony, and if we try to follow it on its wild roller coaster ride, it will just drive us hog crazy and loony too. The crux of the matter here is that we should not fret and worry too much. Be concerned and careful, but try to keep the fretting and worrying to a minimum, since neither of these negative emotions gives us any positive assurance or encouragement. They just eat away at our innards until we’re a complete mess. As one Devotional notes, fretting and worrying is like putting our emotions in a blender; the contents are simply whirled and swirled around so much that they break up into an unrecognizable frothy mixture. Now, since we definitely don’t want to end up as an unrecognizable mixture of dubious parts, we need to curtail the anxiety and torment that these turbulent times are trying to force upon us. Before we get into the heart of the matter though, let me specify one thing that I never had the space to do yesterday. I’m referring to the part where Gamaliel, Bruh Paul’s teacher, used the false messiahs quick rise and fall argument to dissuade the Jewish leaders from killing the apostles. I want to point out that not all false teachers rise and fall quickly, and we should never use that as a means of bypassing false teaching. We should constantly be on the lookout for it, and jump on it as soon as we spot it, rebuking and opposing it. Gamaliel’s position was just a ruse our God used to get His servants out of a tight spot. And that’s exactly why we do not need to be overly fearful or worried about our current situation. Just as the Lord empowered and emboldened the apostles in the face of the Jewish leaders, the same way He will look after and deliver all those who trust in Him. As Bruh David says; ‘The Lord will give strength unto his people; the Lord will bless his people with peace.’ And if we sincerely believe that and act, or run our lives by it, we’ll certainly see it come to pass. The title of Psalm 29, and a very appropriate one, especially for these stressful, uncertain times, is ‘The voice of the Lord in the storm.’ Yes my people, in the midst of the wrath and fury of the storms of life we must be quiet and listen for the voice of the Lord since He’s promised to shelter us from them. ‘For thou hast been a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat, when the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against a wall.’ (Isa.25:4) Amen my Friends! That verse succinctly captures the all encompassing power and capabilities of our God. In whatever difficulty we find ourselves, He’s always the answer to our prayer. Please remember that my people. There’s nothing too big, too small, too simple or too complicated for our God to handle. He made it all, so why should it be a problem eh? And there’s nothing He LOVES more than when we come to Him, cry out to Him in our anguish for His help. That’s when He knows that we’re truly His children. Like all children, our first plea for help is usually to our parents, and since He’s our Creator and Heavenly Father, then, by definition, it’s to Him we should always direct our first pleas. Why? Because ‘He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.’ (Ps.107: 29) And that’s exactly what He will do with any storms that spring up in our lives, once we ask for His help. Oh my Friends, it’s very important that we go to Him in prayer when times of difficulty arise. We can’t just sit around and wait, expecting Him to act. Remember we’re in a partnership with the Most High God Jehovah, and as in all partnerships, each partner has a role to play. Our role is to obey His dictates and call on Him for help. His role is to help us. And remember too, our God is not a wishy-washy God; He’s a business-like, upstanding Deity, who doesn’t really care for wishy-washy followers. He wants His people to be action oriented, doing His works and pleasing Him. And though by nature the human animal is weak and frail, when we accept the Lord’s provenance, it empowers us. When the Holy Spirit of Jesus enters our soul, a whole new being is created, we become new persons. Oh my people, I just want us to know, learn, remember and put into action the overriding principle of Christian faith, wherein the Lord always strengthens those who turn to Him and ask in sincere belief and trust. It has to be sincere cause He not only hears our words, but more importantly listens to our heart to see if the same feeling lies there. On that note, I’ll close with two powerful, outstanding scriptures that bring home that principle. We’ll start with the popular verses of Isaiah 40:29-31: ‘He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength…But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength…they shall walk and not faint.’ Open the Good Book and read the full thing for yourself. It will do you more good than if I wrote it. (smile) And the last passage is from Psalm 68:35. ‘O God, thou art terrible out of thy holy places: the God of Israel is he that giveth strength and power unto his people. Blessed be God.’ Yes my people, Blessed be the God of our Fathers, who strengthens us! Let us therefore turn to Him in humility and prayer, so that we can receive the grace and strength He’s so generously and faithfully promised. Much LOVE!…don’t worry, don’t fret… instead…watch and pray…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 11 June 2009 Acts 5:19‏

11 Jun 2009 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

Acts 5:19    But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth.
 
Ah my friends, it’s another beautiful day and the Lord’s going to send His angel to open all those prison doors that are keeping us locked up and beaten down, just like He did for the apostles. But we need to be in harmony like them, raising our voices as one in fervent prayer and praise. And I just LOVE the reaction: ‘And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.’ (Acts.4:31) Yes my people, they spoke the Word with ‘BOLDNESS!’ That should be our motto, speaking the word with boldness, without fear, not letting some little itty-bitty enemy frighten us. But that’s what happens when you work in concert. Possibly, we too need a renewal of the Spirit within us. Some person or occasion that will get our adrenalin going, make us strong, bold and unselfish. For you see what happened after? ‘And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and one soul: neither said any of them that aught of the things which he possessed were his own; but they had all things in common. And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all.’ (Acts 4:32-33) What a moving story my people! The apostles and the other believers rose up as one, everybody sold what they had and unselfishly contributed it to the cause. ‘And laid them down at the apostles’ feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.’ (Acts 4:35) Wow! And this was all voluntary. Can you imagine that happening amongst us today? It’s very doubtful. The lust of selfishness and personal ownership are too deeply ingrained in us. But don’t feel badly, for there were some like us back then too; Ananias and his wife Sapphira. They also sold their possessions, but lied as per how much they received and the Lord struck them down. As Peter asked Ananias; ‘why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.’ (Acts 5:4) The sad part is that he didn’t have to give all his money. Remember it was voluntary. He could easily have quoted the true amount and said he was keeping some for himself. But he chose to be deceitful, and paid the price. And some three hours after he dropped down in front of the apostles, his wife, not knowing that, came up and did the same thing, with the same result. Ah Friends, the message there is that it doesn’t pay to lie, especially to God, for He knows all and sees all, which we seem to at times forget. And with the Holy Spirit just bubbling in them, the apostles went out and joined the battle. They stirred the pot with their teaching, preaching and healing in Jesus’ name. People came from all over to Jerusalem with sick, crazy folks to be healed. ‘Then the high priest rose up, and all that were with him, (which is the sect of the Sadducees) and were filled with indignation. And laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison.’ (Acts 5:17-18) What else could be expected eh? Disobeying the council’s orders to stop preaching in Jesus’ name and undermining their authority had to bring repercussions. But Friends, like all unbelievers, who figure they have us at their mercy, the council sadly reckoned without the mighty arm of our God. ‘But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth.’ Oh, how mighty is our God! But hear the sweet part: Once they were out, the angel said to them; ‘Go stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life. And when they heard that, they entered into the temple early in the morning and taught.’ (Acts 5:20-21) Oh Friends, would we be so brave and bold? We should be. Meanwhile, the council got in session and sent for them, but with no luck. This confounded them, until somebody came and said; ‘Behold, the men whom ye put in prison are standing in the temple, and teaching the people.’ (Acts 5:25) And all God’s people shouted: ‘Bravo! Hallelujah!’  But their freedom was soon cut short when the soldiers arrested them. Though, as the Good Book says; ‘and brought them without violence; for they feared the people, lest they should have been stoned.’ (Acts 5:26) All power to the people, my Friends! Then when the leaders asked if they hadn’t been forbidden to preach in Jesus’ name, the apostles told them where to get off; ‘We ought to obey God, rather than men.’ (Acts 5:29-32) Well if yuh think the leaders were mad before, now they even considered killing them. But thank the Lord that in every situation He places a voice of reason; this time a Pharisee, in fact Bruh Paul’s teacher, Gamaliel, a man of good standing in the community. He warned them about killing the apostles, reasoning that several false messiahs had risen up over the years with a big splash, then disappeared just as quickly, so it might be more prudent to just let them be, let them run their race of glory, and eventually the whole thing will peter out. ‘For if this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought. But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply ye be found even to fight against God.’ (Acts 5:38-39) The Lord’s mysterious hand moving there again mih Friends. The council agreed, flogged them, then set them free with the same warning not to preach in Jesus’ name. But note the apostles’ reaction my people. ‘And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name. And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.’ (Acts 5:41-42) Glory Hallelujah! Oh mih breddren, what an outstanding example of faith! That’s how we should be today: standing together as one, witnessing for Christ, regardless of who says us nay. But it all comes down to our level of trust, belief and faith my people. And it’s of the utmost importance that we don’t let anyone frighten or threaten us to stop preaching and teaching Christ. Remember, if you’re a true believer, He is real, and living in you. So let’s see if we can’t seriously ramp up our faith nuh, get truly motivated, and go out there on the battlefields of this evil world and win souls for Jesus. That is our job. Much LOVE!…stand up, stand up for Jesus…the trumpet call obey…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 10 June 2009 Acts 5:19‏

10 Jun 2009 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

Acts 5:19     But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth…
 
Yes my Friends, that’s yet another jailbreak orchestrated by the Lord! Seems that was His specialty. (smile) This time though it was a group of the apostles, disobeying the Jewish elite’s threats to stop preaching Christ, teaching and healing in His Name. Yesterday we heard about Him breaking out Peter from Herod’s clutches, that’s the second time, for he’s also included in this group. Then later on, with Paul and Silas in jail, our God caused an earthquake that shook the very foundations of the prison, so all the prisoners chains were loosed and the doors thrown wide open. (Acts 16:26) But note one thing Friends, on each occasion His Holy Name was praised and glorified. With Bruh Paul and Silas, the keeper of the prison, instead of committing suicide, fearing that all the prisoners had escaped, through Bruh Paul’s quick intervention, he and his whole family were born again, receiving Christ as their Lord and Saviour. (Acts 16:27-36) Per yesterday’s occasion with Peter, after the angel left him, and he’d considered his options, he ended up at Mark’s mother’s house, ‘where many were gathered together praying.’ (Acts 12:12) There was one glitch here though; when Peter knocked at the gate’s door, a young lady, Rhoda, came to answer it. ‘And when she knew Peter’s voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in, and told how Peter stood before the gate. And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then they said it is his angel. But Peter continued knocking: and when they had opened the door, and saw him, they were astonished.’ (Acts 12:14-16) That brings to mind Jesus’ words; ‘O ye of little faith.’ (Mat.6: 30) It also leads the scholars to conclude, that though the church prayed fervently, their faith was somewhat lacking, because they had such a hard time believing that Peter was really outside. They either didn’t believe that God would respond with such a miracle, or that He would do it so soon. That, my people, is also a common thing amongst modern day believers. We pray, plead, wish and hope, but oftimes the essential element, true belief, true faith is either not there, or not strong enough. We believe it in some form and fashion, but not completely. But the whole point of faith is to truly believe, before we actually see. That’s not always an easy task, but one we have to come to grips with, if we want to grow and mature in the Christian faith. Now, re Today’s Bit, the local Jewish leaders, the Sanhedrin Council, had already locked up Peter and John overnight for preaching the Word and healing, in particular one man lame from birth. But when brought before them the next day and asked whose name they did it in, Peter waxed oratorical, being filled with the Holy Spirit, saying they were a bunch of greedy, selfish hypocrites, and they healed in the name of Jesus Christ whom they crucified. The stone the builder refused had become the chief cornerstone, and the only way to salvation. (Acts 4:5-12) The fly in the ointment here was the lowly masses, who had been stirred up by the acts and words of John and Peter, and were ready to believe and receive Christ. The leaders feared a riot if they dealt harshly with the apostles, and after privately considering how best to punish them, agreed all they could do was threaten them to stop preaching, teaching and healing in Christ’s name. ‘But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.’ (Acts 4:19-20) After threatening them again, the leaders let them go, but the damage was already done; the man they’d miraculously healed was over forty years old, and everybody knew him since he constantly hung out at the temple entrance, and ‘all men glorified God, for that which was done.’ (Acts 4:21) Ah Friends, those apostles sure had manly parts. Peter and John went back to the group and told them what had happened. ‘And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, Lord, thou art God, which hast made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is….’ And they went on to explain their plight, asking for help and guidance. ‘And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word, By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus.’ (Acts 4:23-30) Ah Friends, can you imagine the guts, the gumption, the faith it took for them to come before Almighty God and ask for the boldness, the wherewithal to preach His word in the face of the powerful Jewish elite? If we only had half as much faith and parts, the enemy would be running from us or believing, instead of thumbing their noses. But remember Friends, time longer than twine, and a battle won doesn’t guarantee victory in the overall war. Our Leader Jesus is still in control, still at the forefront leading His troops, and once He’s there, anything, no, everything’s possible. Have faith my people! Tomorrow, God willing, we’ll continue this. Much LOVE!…the race is not for the swift…but for the sure of foot…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 9 June 2009 Acts 12:11‏

09 Jun 2009 1 Comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

Acts 12:11     And when Peter was come to himself, he said, Now I know of a surety, that the Lord hath sent his angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews.
 
Oh Friends, on this rainy June morn, I’m sure many, if not all of us, can use an angel to help us out of some dire circumstance in which we’re entangled. Unfortunately though, only a few will be granted that heavenly blessing, hope I’m one of them, (smile) but the rest will just have to muddle through as best we can, for it’s not every case that we think calls for heavenly help that meets the Father’s requirements. But what are angels, you ask? Hear Bruh Paul: ‘Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?’   (Heb.1:14) Yes my Friends, angels are the Lord’s helpers in the spirit world. They go around doing His bidding, re those of us who believe on His Son, Jesus, and come to him in faith; ‘the heirs of salvation.’ And for the lucky faithful who receive angelic help today, I implore us to go out and make it a powerful, revealing testimonial to our omnipotent God, just like Peter did when imprisoned by Herod. Before I get caught up in Peter’s story though, like I did with Daniel and his buddies yesterday, let’s just mention a couple other instances of angels doing yeoman service. ‘And when we cried unto the Lord, he heard our voice, and sent an angel, and hath brought us forth out of Egypt: and behold we are in Kadesh, a city in the uttermost part of thy border. (Num. 20:16) That’s Moses asking the people of Edom for permission to pass through their territory on the way to the Promised Land, which they refused, instead bringing out a large, strong force to intercept them. And would you believe they were family? Edom was Israel’s brother, (Deut.23:7) descendants of Esau, Jacob’s brother. Then we have Bruh Paul. Hn! He must have had angels constantly around him, for the amount of trouble he got into. As he wrote to Timothy, in his trials, nobody stood by him, ‘but all men forsook me…Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion. And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.’ (2Tim.4:16-18) Not that nobody cared for him, but in his last days in prison in Rome, after all he’d been through, he was convinced that only the Lord could have made it possible, and right to the very end he believed that a place was being prepared for him in heaven. Say what yuh want about Bruh Paul, mih Friends, he had one thing in great abundance, that too many of us lack; real, earth moving, mind bending faith. Oh if there was only some way to bottle it and spread it around! But sadly, faith only comes through trials, and great faith, through great trials. So much so that when Peter was sprung from jail that night, he had to shake himself to make sure he wasn’t dreaming. It was so easy. After killing James, John’s brother, Herod saw that it pleased the Jews, so he locked up Peter during the Passover, planning to bring him out after the feast and make him the second martyr. Security was so tight in the jail that Peter had four squads of four soldiers guarding him. ‘Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.’ (Acts 12:5) And Friends, as I keep saying, our God is the master of timing, Why? Cause the very night before Herod planned to bring out Peter and martyr him, our God staged a daring prison break. ‘Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison. And behold the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands. And the angel said unto him, Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And he saith unto him, Cast thy garment about thee, and follow me.’ (Acts 12:6-8) Peter did as he was told, all the time though thinking it was a dream. They walked past two guard posts, which the scholars claim the guards themselves unwittingly opened, then miracle of miracles; ‘they came unto the iron gate that leadeth unto the city; which opened to them of his own accord: and they went out, and passed on through one street; and forthwith the angel departed from him.’ (Acts 12:10-11) Ah mih people, chalk up another miracle to the Lord, and also to the power of faith and prayer! The main gate just opened automatically. And I like the angel’s business-like manner. Once he was sure Peter was safe, he took off. Yes mih Friends, there are angels out there who minister to us, who do God’s bidding in our lives, but once they’re done, they move on to look after others, then we have to take responsibility and give serious thanks, praise and soulful testimony to the Most High for bailing us out of whatever trouble we were in. It takes a lot of faith to surrender our lives to Him completely; faith that’s hard earned.  But if we truly desire to walk in Jesus’ footsteps, remember, we must be prepared to suffer some in His Name. We’ll continue this tomorrow. Till then, the Good Lord willing; Much LOVE!…the path to great faith…is filled with many excruciating twists and turns…

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