Today’s Scrip-Bit 19 December 2017 Psalm 36:9.

19 Dec 2017 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Psalm 36:9.   For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light.

And then it was six… and counting! Yeh friends, six more days to the big one of Christmas! And I do hope that the celebrations are being ramped up, and all the preparations are falling nicely into place at your homes. 

It’s not looking too bad at my place. The outside lights are the best in the neighbourhood. (smile) So I’m somewhat biased, but they do look good. And I came home last night to find the Christmas tree being decorated. That looks good too…as always…! 

And brother, was I thrilled when I opened the door and was greeted, or rather assaulted, by a wonderful smell of baking Christmas cake in the air. And for a while the aroma just wafted through the house, adding to the air of Christmas cheer and peace and goodwill that existed. 

But all of that though friends should be secondary to the overwhelming presence of the Spirit of Jesus in our homes. For He, His miraculous birth, is the entire reason for all this celebration! And we need to keep that uppermost in our minds. 

And talking about birth, today I want to share a passage from Gramps Schuller’s (Dr. Robert H. Schuller) Hour of Power Devotional titled ‘Nourishment from Above.’ And he says: ‘Wait on the Lord, and He will renew your strength! Prayer is the umbilical cord that allows you – with your embryonic ideas – to draw nourishment from a source that you, like an unborn infant, can neither see nor fully know or comprehend – God our heavenly Father! 

Prayer is the power that pulls everything together successfully. With this prayerful attitude tackle your problem today. Turn it over to God. Take out a sheet of paper. Pick up a pencil. And get ready for the ideas that he will drop into your mind.’ 

(And as you do that, you can pray something like this:) ‘Father, I have a strong sensation that you brought me to this moment of prayer because you have a plan to share with me insights to solve my problems. So I will go out and face the sunlight of a new day and a new week crammed with undiscovered possibilities. I am encouraged! I am enthused! I am more hopeful than I have been in a long time! Amen.’ 

Oh friends, do we Christians ever need to be more enthused, encouraged and hopeful than ever before because of the evil and ungodly world in which we’re living. And that uplifting will ONLY come when we establish a tight relationship, keep in constant communication with our heavenly Father through prayer, for He is indeed the source of all life and all good things. 

That brings us to our Bit: ‘For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light.’ Oh my people, our God is indeed the fountain of life: it’s through Him that we were granted physical life, and it’s ONLY through Him is eternal spiritual life available! Jesus made this fact clear so often that I don’t see how we can ever forget or neglect it. 

Listen to Him talking to the Samaritan woman at the well. ‘Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again. But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well (fountain) of water springing up into everlasting life.’ (John 4:13-14) What an inspiring and encouraging scripture friends! 

Now hear Jesus after His listeners told Him about the Lord giving their forefathers bread (manna) from heaven in the wilderness. ‘Verily, verily I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. 

Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread. And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.’ (John 6:32-35) 

Glory to God my brethren! For how can we ever beat that promise eh? Jesus IS the bread that gives life; all kinds, although there He is referring in particular to spiritual and eternal life. 

And if you still have doubts and misgivings about the true source of life, then listen to Jesus one more time. ‘In the last day, that great day of the feast (feast of tabernacles), Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly (heart) shall flow rivers of living water.’ (John 7:37-38) 

Oh precious people, Jesus is indeed the fountain of life, the bread of life, the giver of living water (the indwelling Holy Spirit), the giver of physical life, spiritual life, eternal life – whatever kind of good life you’re looking for, the source, the head spring, is to be found in Jesus! Please remember that and act accordingly. 

Now let’s go home declaring loudly and proudly to this evil and ungodly world, who and whose we are in our Tuesday Mantra. ‘I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world.  Amen!’ 

And now, in this Christmas season, the time of Christ’s birth, let’s go out and truly share that wonderful LOVE of our awesome friend Jesus! It’s ever so appropriate. Much LOVE!

…as for me and mine…we will follow Jesus…the fountain of ALL life…

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 28 October 2016 Matthew 5:6.

28 Oct 2016 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Matthew 5:6.   Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

Well ah hear them coming down the road singing: ‘This is Friday, yes is Friday…And we going to party some of the weekend away. We going to fellowship some too. And get in a li’l rest too, so we can be fit and ready for the new workweek on Monday. Thank God is Friday oui! Thank God for Fridays and the weekends!’ 

Well what could I say to that eh friends? Nothing much, for they had me beat, including all the necessary things for a successful weekend in their li’l ditty. Now, if that only was the modus operandi of the majority of us, then we’d be in fine shape come Monday. 

But unfortunately many of us still cling to the negative approach of simply wasting away the weekend in debauchery and riotous living. Thus still making it necessary for us to chant our Friday Chant seeking a different and much better perspective.  

As one now: ‘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.’ 

Ah mih people, how we waste our earthly lives by not following God’s word found in His Holy Book, the Bible, where He sets out the rules for godly living. And the sad part is that it’s not onerous at all. There are two basic rules; LOVE God, and LOVE each other. 

But sadly, too many of us have trouble following those simple directions. I guess they’re just too simple. We seem to need stringent rules and regulations spelled out to the letter; like don’t do this, and don’t do that. We can’t seem to break down the big, general directions for ourselves. 

Oh, if only we could be dialled in sincerely to our Bit: ‘Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.’ 

Yeh my people, if only we could be hungry and thirsty for the righteousness of God, rather than the unrighteousness of this sinful and evil world! What a wonderful world it would truly be! 

But the truth is that we can’t give up, those of us who feel that way, must continue fighting, continue hoping that by living the righteous life, others will see what a blessed lifestyle it is, and desire to join us. That’s why we’re still down here on earth yuh know; to show others the right way and help them come to Jesus for salvation and eternal life. 

Now let’s check out some scripture on the subject. Yesterday we saw the Lord offering free spiritual food through Isaiah, to all and sundry. Listen to Jesus now, as He talks to the Samaritan woman at the well. 

When He asked her for a drink of water, she was most surprised because the Samaritans and the Jews did not have good relations. But Jesus kindly told her. ‘If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have giving thee living water.’ (John 4:10) 

The living water there refers to the Holy Spirit. Yes friends, when we turn to Jesus for drink for our soul, He generously offers us the Holy Spirit. And later on, when the woman was perplexed by Jesus’ argument, He told her. 

‘Whosoever drinketh of this water (from the well) shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well (a fountain) of water springing up into eternal life.’ (John 4:13-14) 

Ah mih people, what a wonderful promise! And though she did not fully comprehend Jesus’ words, the woman was smart enough to realize that Jesus was offering something very valuable and very desirable. 

Unfortunately though, today way too many of us refuse to have anything to do with Jesus, and even those of us who do claim to be involved with Him, our passion and enthusiasm for His way of life is sadly lacking. 

We don’t have the true zeal, the burning desire to emulate Him, otherwise His body here on earth, the church, would not be as lacklustre and waning in importance as it is. Now listen to Isaiah as he talks about the punishment of the rebellious. 

‘Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold my servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry: behold my servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty: behold my servants shall rejoice, but ye shall be ashamed: Behold my servants shall sing for joy of heart, but ye shall cry for sorrow of heart, and shall howl (wail) for vexation (grief) of spirit.’ (Is.65:12-13) 

Yes my brethren, that’s what we have to look forward to when we seek for and honour the righteousness of God! 

And we’ll end with a couple of verses from ‘The Magnificat,’ Mary’s song of joy to the Lord when He anointed her to bear His Son, Jesus Christ. She solemnly declares: ‘And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation. 

He hath showed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seats (thrones), and exalted them of low degree (the lowly). He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent away empty.’ (Luke 1:50-53) 

Oh my precious people, please understand that only by hungering and thirsting for the righteousness of God in this calamitous world, can we ever be filled with the true living water of Christ. Much LOVE!

…the living water of Christ…is free to all those who sincerely receive Him…as their Lord and Saviour…