Isaiah 55:1. Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money, come ye, buy and eat: yea, come buy wine and milk without money and without price.
Oh Friends, the ole fella’s in a somewhat sour and sombre mood this Wednesday morning. In fact from since last night he’s been that way. And there isn’t any good or valid reason for it, because I’m fine in all other aspects of life. But I just don’t have the chutzpah, the get up and go that I usually have.
Even stuff that usually thrills me, didn’t do so last night. I guess the mind, body and soul are either tired, or that wily Lucifer espied a little hole in my armour and sneaked in a poisoned, fiery dart.
But yuh know what mih people, we’re going to correct that right now by putting on a new suit of spiritual armour…
There, it’s done! I have on a new suit with no blemishes whatsoever! I’m fully dressed in my helmet of salvation, breastplate of righteousness, belt of truth, sandals of peace, shield of faith, and by my side is my trusty sword of the Spirit, my Good Book!
So Lucifer won’t be able to get in again, and we’ll freeze out what little poison is left in my soul. Thank the Lord!
Yes Friends, the ole fella’s spirit is already on the rebound. Praise the Lord! And there’s really no need to ever worry, because we can handle whatever comes against us since we serve and worship a powerful and magnificent God who is always with us, working for our good.
And He declares His awesome magnanimity right here in the words of our Bit. ‘Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money, come ye, buy and eat: yea, come buy wine and milk without money and without price.’
Oh my people, that’s one deal no human being can beat or afford to pass up!
But strangely enough, many of us are doing just that; passing up the greatest offer ever made to man! We’ll flock to some business place that claims to have a fantastic deal, although more times than not it’s a scam, but very few of us are flocking to God for this free gift of grace. How sad my brethren!
But I guess we’re all afraid of free stuff and things that sound too good to be true. However, everyday many of us are still being taken in, caught in schemes that sound way too good to be true. We plunk down our hard earned cash, only to see it disappear into the wild, blue yonder. Then we moan and groan about if we’d only known.
Steups! On the contrary friends, this offer of God is one we’ll moan and groan about, because we HAVE NOT ACCEPTED IT! For come the judgement day, there’ll be no excuses or chances to make it right. So please listen, and wisely accept God’s offer, RIGHT NOW! Believe me, it’s the wisest decision you can ever make in this life!
And moreover, it will directly affect what happens to you from the day your body returns to the dust from which it was made, right through to eternity. Now you obviously don’t want to experience anything but the BEST in eternity, and this free offer of grace, salvation and eternal life is the ONLY THING that can guarantee you a blessed eternity!
And we saw yesterday that if you accept this spiritual offer, your soul will delight in fatness, in abundance. (Is.55:2) And there’s even more to this amazing offer, as Isaiah declares: ‘ Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live, and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.’ (Is.55:3)
Oh brother, if you ever received the same kind of mercies that Bruh David received, then it means you’ll be deluged with mercy and LOVING-kindness, because that’s how the Lord treated him!
And consequently, Isaiah could declare: ‘Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people.’ (Is.55:4)
The Lord also holds out Bruh David as an example to us of righteousness, as a witness, a leader, a testimony to His awesome mercy and LOVING-kindness. But we’ll never enjoy any of that abundant mercy and LOVING-kindness until we accept God’s free gifts of grace, mercy, forgiveness, salvation and eternal life.
And we’ll close with some immortal words of Jesus… Sorry, all of Jesus’ words are immortal. These particular ones come from His conversation with the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well.
‘Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosever 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)
Oh my brethren, that’s it right there in a nutshell! If you want to enjoy everlasting life, then you HAVE TO ACCEPT Jesus’ offer of spiritual upliftment. IT’S THE ONLY WAY!
Please remember that and act on it RIGHT NOW nuh, because we don’t know when Jesus will return, but once He does, it will be too late.
As they say, a word to the wise is sufficient, so please be wise today my brethren and make sure that you’re on the wonderful inside when Jesus returns, and not on the damned outside sorrowfully looking in. Much LOVE!
…I am the WAY…the TRUTH…and the LIFE…NO MAN cometh to the Father…BUT BY ME… (John 14:6)
Today’s Scrip-Bit 26 March 2014 Isaiah 55:1
26 Mar 2014 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a leader, a witness, abundance, accept God's offer, afraid of free stuff, always working for our good, amazing offer, belt of truth, blessed eternity, breastplate of righteousness, can't come to the Father but through Jesus, caught in schemes, chutzpah, come buy and eat without money, come to the waters, come unto me, commander, covenant, deal, delight in fatness, don't have any money, eternal life, eternity, everlasting, everlasting life, example of righteousness, flocking to God, forgiveness, fountain of water, free gift of grace, get up and go, God is always with us, helmet of salvation, immortal, incline your ear, Isaiah, Jacob's Well, judgement day, loving kindness, Lucifer, magnanimity, magnificent God, mercy, milk, moan and groan, never thirst, no need to worry, on the outside looking in, pass up, poison, poisoned dart, powerful God, Praise the Lord, salvation, Samaritan woman, sandals of peace, scam, shield of faith, sounds too good to be true, sour and sombre mood, spiritual offer, suit of spiritual armour, sure mercies of David, sword of the Spirit, taken in, testimony to god's mercy, Thank the Lord, the best, the Good Book, the greatest offer ever made to man, the Life, the Truth, the Way, thirst again, we can handle whatever comes against us, who ever's thirsty, wine, wisest decision, word to the wise, words of jesus, your soul shall live
Today’s Scrip-Bit 5 December 2013 Matthew 6:25
05 Dec 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: abundance, anxious, behaviour, bread, bread of life, bright and bouncy, clothes, come to faith, Creator, daily appearence, daily bread, daily needs, daily provision, dangerous tendency, deceitful, deprive oneself, distracted, distrust God, don't worry, drink, eat, excessive manner, exuberant, faith, faithfully doing God's will, few possessions, food, frail and fallible man, friends, gracious, heavenly Father, indispensable, inner mental stability, insecurity, Israelites, joy of the lord, lack, little faith, look a gift horse in the mouth, look God-ward, loving, low in spirit, Lucifer, manna, material possessions, material things, not worthy of god, Old Testament, Praise the Lord, promises, purpose, raiment, serve one master, spiritual blessings, strength, the Lord's prayer, true bread from heaven, undeniable truth, wear, worry
Today’s Scrip-Bit 3 December 2013 1 John 1:9
03 Dec 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: 2 Samuel, a believer's life, Absalom, abundance, adversity, Bathsheba, be wise, better example, blessed, Bruh David, chagrin, children of Ammon, Christians, civil war, cleanse, confess, consequences, despised, destroyed, disagreement, disobedience, disrepute, divine truth, dressed down, earthly and heavenly lives, essence of wisdom, ever-Loving, evil, evil leader, faith, faithful, faults, forgive, forgiveness, forgiving, good and proper, gospel truth, gracious, gross misconduct, hand of Saul, harsh judgements, house of Israel and Judah, hypocrites, in the sight of the sun, individual circumstances, integral parts, judgements, justice, light of jesus, Lord god of Israel, LOVE, loving kindness, Lucifer, lusting, merciful, mercy, nansi story, omnipotent god, perfect example, pilgrims, pity, plod on in faith, plotting, preach, promises, prophet Nathan, rebellion, rightousness, scriptural standards, secretly, sinful darkness, sinfulness, sins, strife, the Lord's commandment, the Word of Almighty God, trust, unfathomable, unrighteousness, unwanted, Uriah the Hittite, usually comes to light, what's done in darkness, wisdom, wise living
1 John 1:9. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Aye mih bredden, I never expected these wonderful promises of our ever-LOVING, merciful, forgiving, gracious, omnipotent God to take up so many days nuh! And we’re only on the second one, with quite a few more to go through.
But that’s a-okay, because they are all very integral parts of our faith, of both our earthly and heavenly lives. And without them… Hn! I refuse to even think about that option, for in our serious sinfulness, we would have been destroyed long ago.
So please, let’s be wise and plod on in faith and trust as true pilgrims, as those promises teach us about the divine truth and wisdom contained in the Word of Almighty God. And today we’ll see the perfect example of our Bit, lived out in a believer’s life. ‘If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.’
Yeh Friends, that perfect example of the real life working of our Bit is to be found in none other than Bruh David. 2 Samuel 11, tells us about his seeing the beautiful Bathsheba, wife of Uriah the Hittite, lusting after her, lying with her, then plotting to have her husband killed in battle.
Most of the populace were none the wiser, but Almighty God saw his abominable sin and sought justice as is His wont. Remember that saying that what is done in darkness, is often brought to light. So in 2 Samuel 12, the Lord sends the prophet Nathan to Bruh David with some nansi story about a rich man having a visitor, and instead of killing one of his many sheep to serve his visitor, took the pet lamb of his neighbour.
Oh Friends, yuh see how our Lord can be even more devious than us when it’s called for. Now when Bruh David hears Nathan’s story, he’s furious at the rich man.
‘And David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to Nathan, As the Lord liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely (deserves to) die. And he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.’ (2 Sam.12:5-6)
But can you imagine Bruh David’s chagrin when Nathan says to him: ‘Thou art that man. Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul; and I gave thee thy master’s house, and thy master’s wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such things (much more).
Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in his sight? thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon.’ (2 Sam.12:7-9)
Yeh mih people, Nathan dressed down Bruh David real good and proper in the Lord’s name!
And as the scholars’ so rightly note: ’12:5-7. How easy it is to see the sins of others without applying the scriptural standards to ourselves (cf. Matt.7:3-5)! David called for the full weight of the law to be applied (cf. Ex.22:1)’
That last reference deals with the stealing of animals and the repayment. But the scholars’ statement is gospel truth! We’re always quick to pass harsh judgements on others, but never apply the same standards to ourselves, as Jesus points out in the first reference (Matt.7:3-5), quick to take the splinter from someone else’s eye, without removing the big beam from ours.
But sadly, the Lord wasn’t done with Bruh David, for Nathan continued with his rebuke. ‘Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife.
Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will raise up evil (adversity) against thee out of thine own house, and I will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbour, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of the sun. For thou didst it secretly: but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.’ (2 Sam.12:10-12)
What a fiery dart to Bruh David’s heart mih breddren! And yuh better believe that the Lord was very serious.
For as the scholars’ tell us: ’12:10-11. These judgements came to pass literally in the sins of his own household (ch.13), the rebellion by his own son Absalom (ch.15), and the civil war that followed (chs.16-20). David was never to fully know rest again.’
Oh Friends, you can read those referenced chapters for yourselves and realize the truth of the scholars’ words. But thereafter, because of his gross misconduct, Bruh David was always embroiled in some sort of strife or disagreement, a lot of it within his own family.
It just goes to show my fellow believers that the Lord is very serious about His Word, re promises, and disobedience. Bruh David was king, and should have known better, especially since the Lord had blessed him so much, showered him with such worldly abundance and LOVING-kindness. A better example was expected from him.
Likewise, the Lord expects better examples from us, His adopted children. We can’t afford to preach one thing, then go out and do something entirely different, thus bringing disrepute upon the Lord and His righteousness.
Unfortunately though, we do it all the time, and that is why so many hold Christians up as the biggest hypocrites on the planet. And oftimes they are quite right.
So Friends, to day let’s sit down and consider our individual circumstances and see if there be any serious faults in us nuh. And if there be any, let’s immediately confess them to the Father, and sincerely ask for His mercy and forgiveness, for that is the very essence of wisdom and wise living.
So until we meet again tomorrow, the Lord in favour, let’s try our best to walk in the revealed light of Jesus, and not wallow in the sinful darkness associated with the world and Lucifer, its evil leader. Much LOVE!
…please remember that…disobedience ALWAYS brings…unwanted, unfathomable consequences…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 26 April 2013 Psalm 119:169
26 Apr 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: absolute truth, abundance, attitudes, body, christianity, comfortable, commandments, fellowship, glorious kingdom, glory hallelujah, God's Law, God's Word, goodness, infallible truth, inferior life, judgements, loving god, mind, my cry, prayer of supplication, precepts, reactions to our workweek, rest, righteousness., salvation, soul, statutes, sufficent fun, testimonies, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, understanding, weary traveller, wondrous works
Psalm 119:169. Let my cry come near before thee, O Lord: give me understanding according to thy word.
And the crier, cried: ‘Oh Friends, oh Friends, it’s Fridayyyy! Labour soon done! The weekend’s here!’ And all God’s children gave a joyful shout: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday yes! Glory Hallelujah! Ah can’t wait to enjoy the weekend!’ Yuh know Friends, it’s amusing to see the very different responses brought about by Fridays and Mondays in our crazy world. The first brings joy because work will cease for a couple of days, while the second gets us all upset, sad and blue because we have to go to work. What does that say about the attitudes of our society eh? That we’re lazy, don’t like work, gotten too comfortable, even though work is what keeps a roof over our heads and food on our tables? I really don’t know, but the important thing is that we find a better balance between our reactions for the end and beginning of the workweek, or else we’ll be forever miserable; too high on Fridays, and too low on Mondays. And the only way to do that is to get in agreement with our God, do as our Bit says: ‘Let my cry come near before thee, O Lord: give me understanding according to thy word.’ Yes Friends, without true understanding, as it pertains to God’s Word, which according to the scholars, here means ‘an all embracing term for God’s revelation in any form,’ we are truly lost, like a weary traveller in the wilderness with no food, water, or sense of direction. That’s because God’s Word gives us spiritual food, which includes direction and meaning to live this earthly life successfully. As the psalmist continues in this section – I have longed for thy salvation – ‘Let my (prayer of) supplication come before thee: deliver me according to thy word. My lips shall utter praise, when thou hast taught me thy statutes. My tongue shall speak of thy word: for all thy commandments are righteousness. Let thine hand help me; for I have chosen thy precepts. I have longed for thy salvation, O Lord; and thy law is my delight. Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee; and let thy judgements help me.’ (Ps.119:170-175) Oh my people, it’s all about God’s Word! We need to delve into it; read, mark and inwardly digest it, so that we can lead the life Jesus desires of us. But the catch 22 is that we can only do it with God’s help, through His Holy Spirit. Now for us to better understand what the psalmist is talking about, here is a glossary of some of the terms he uses. ‘Law (torah) comes from a verb meaning “to teach,” and thus came to be applied to a wide range of revelation, from an individual directive, to the entire Pentateuch. -5 Books of Moses. It emphasizes that God has taught us in His Word what he requires of us. Testimonies (‘edot) emphasizes the content of the Word as that which God has testified of Himself and His will. Precepts (piqudim) refers to instructions from a superior regarding the duties of those under him, in this case from God to man. Statutes (huqim) is related to a verb meaning “to engrave” and thus implies permanent and unchangeable regulations. Commandments (mitswot) is a word assuming the authority of the commander and the inherent necessity of obeying the content of the charge. Judgements (mispatim) or ordinances refer to decisions God has made as a judge in order to make earthly behaviour conform to His heavenly standard.’ Hope that helps us to better understand the Word. (smile) I hem and hawed about including the meanings of the terms, but common sense won out in the long run, since we can’t understand stuff when we don’t know their meanings in the context of what we’re reading. Yes my brethren, understanding is the key! No wonder the psalmist declares early on in the Psalm: ‘Make me to understand the way of thy precepts: so shall I talk of (meditate on) thy wondrous works.’ (Ps.119:27) And again in verse 144, he states: ‘The righteousness of thy testimonies is everlasting: give me understanding, and I shall live.’ (Ps.119:144) And using the definition of testimonies above, that means that whatever God has testified of Himself and His will is absolute truth, and will not change, just like He doesn’t change! Oh Friends, the simple truth of the matter is that life won’t have much meaning until we really understand what our great and LOVING God is all about. That’s why Bruh David could boldly proclaim in Psalm 145, his song of praise – The Lord is gracious – ‘Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable (beyond our understanding). One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts. I will speak of (meditate on) the glorious honour (splendour) of thy majesty, and of thy wondrous works. And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible (awesome) acts: and I will declare thy greatness. They shall abundantly (eagerly) utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall sing of thy righteousness.’ (Ps.145:3-7) Words of infallible truth my brethren! And now, let’s end as Bruh David declared, and sing of the Lord’s righteousness and goodness by chanting our Friday Chant. No I didn’t forget it. (smile) All together 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.’ Yes Friends, let’s enjoy the weekend in the right perspective! Much LOVE!…without a true understanding of God’s Word…mankind is doomed to an inferior life… P.S. Sorry for the lateness of the Bit, but the hemming and hawing about including the meanings of the words above, took up more time than I had bargained for. But I definitely think it was worth it. Much LOVE!
Today’s Scrip-Bit 4 April 2013 Malachi 3:10
04 Apr 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: absolute power, abundance, Advocate, blessed is the Lamb that was slain, Brotherhood, deliverer, eternal life, faithful words and actions, glory hallelujah, God's Sovereignty, good conscience, gospel truth, heaps, heathen, jump-started, king Hezekiah, living truth, local church, lord of hosts, LOVE, loving kindness, magnitude of blessings, mercy, Most Wonderful Being, obedience, pour out a blessing, praise, prince of peace, salvation, saviour jesus, spunkiness, storehouse, storehouse tithing, strength and guidance, thanks, tithes, true believers, windows of heaven
Malachi 3:10. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
Oh Friends, oh Friends, the ole fella’s up and about with surprising spunkiness this Resurrection Thursday morning! Yes my people, please remember that it’s only been a few days since our Lord and Saviour Jesus defeated that ole cowardly crook Lucifer, and triumphantly rose from the grave, which had no power to hold Him captive for long. And all God’s people declared a loud and grateful, ‘Glory Hallelujah! Blessed is the Lamb that was slain but rose again with absolute power and might, to whom all knees shall bow and every tongue confess that He is God!’ (Rom.14:11) Yes mih Friends, our Advocate, Deliverer, Leader, Prince of Peace, etc. etc. is riding high in the world this week. Please let’s keep Him riding high all year long, because that’s what He expects, desires and most assuredly deserves. The heathen will try to put Him down, try to make Him of no account, but we, His true believers and followers know that He is indeed the Most Wonderful Being in ALL the universe! Let’s make sure that others know it, and by our faithful words and actions, draw them into His ever increasing and most worthy fold, so that they too will experience the LOVE, the Brotherhood, the Salvation and Eternal Life that we’ve been guaranteed. And all God’s children said a loud and hearty. ‘Amen!’ Yeh mih breddren, the ole fella’s chuckling here because he certainly seems to be on a roll this morning. The Good Lord didn’t even give me a chance to ask for strength and guidance, but just got me going, jump-started me right away. No wondering what to write at all. And all I can say is a hearty, ‘Thank You Lord! You are so wonderful to me, that I don’t know what I’d do without You in my life! And thankfully I’ll never have to find that out, since You’ve faithfully promised never to leave or forsake me, but be with me all the days of my life, even into eternity. Thank You again Lord!’ Awright Friends, enough of that now, or else I’ll just get carried away and continue with much deserved thanks and praise to our wonderful God. (smile) And today we’ll continue with our Bit that deals with tithes. ‘Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat (food) in mine house, and prove (test) me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.’ And that’s the living truth, my brethren! If we do as God declares, we’ll be so blessed that we won’t have room to store the great magnitude of blessings He’ll pour down on us. And remember, that’s not because of what or how much we give, but because of our obedience, which signifies that we hold the Lord in true sovereignty and reverence. Now let’s look at a true example of tithing bringing great blessing. It deals with King Hezekiah’s provision for priests and Levites in olden Israel. Having set the work assignments for both groups, he then made provision for them to concentrate on their numerous duties without having to worry about food and shelter too. ‘Moreover he commanded the people that dwelt in Jerusalem to give the portion of (due to) the priests and the Levites, that they might be encouraged in (devote themselves to) the law of the Lord. And as soon as the commandment came abroad, the children of Israel brought in abundance the first fruits of corn, wine, and oil, and honey, and of all the increase of the field; and the tithe of all things brought they in abundantly. And concerning the children of Israel and Judah, that dwelt in the cities of Judah, they also brought in the tithe of oxen and sheep, and the tithe of holy things which were consecrated unto the Lord their God, and laid them by heaps. In the third month they began to lay the foundation of the heaps (lay them in heaps), and finished them in the seventh month. And when Hezekiah and the princes came and saw the heaps, they blessed the Lord, and his people Israel. Then Hezekiah questioned with the priests and the Levites concerning the heaps. And Azariah the chief priest of the house of Zadok answered him, and said, Since the people began to bring the offerings into the house of the Lord, we have had enough to eat, and have left plenty: for the Lord hath blessed his people; and that which is left is this great store (abundance).’ (1 Chr.31:4-10) Yes my people, the Lord is indeed faithful to all His promises! Now here’s some info from the scholars that I think is very important to us all. ‘Tithing is the practice of giving 10 percent of one’s income to the Lord. It is called “storehouse tithing” by some who require that the tithe be given to the Lord through the local church. Illustration: while some Christians disagree, the principle of “God’s place” for worship is the basis for storehouse tithing. (Deut.12) The temple in the Old Testament (1) was the central place characterized by God’s presence; (2) possessed the symbols of redemption; and (3) was where the man of God served. In the New Testament, these three attributes characterize the local church. Hence the principle of storehouse tithing continues into the church age. Application: Some people withhold their tithe from their local church because they disagree with its expenditure of funds. These Christians should join another church where they can wholeheartedly make their contributions in good conscience. Because our actual tithe belongs to the local church, giving to parachurch organizations should be in addition to the tithe. (First Ref, Gen.14:20; Primary Ref, Mal.3:10; cf. Matt.22:21) Ah Friends, I know that that will complicate some of our lives, including mine, but we’ll just have to step up to the plate as best we can. And please, let’s not beat ourselves to death if we’re guilty of not fully tithing. The Lord knows our circumstances and the state of our hearts, and once we do our best to repair the situation, He will still look down favourably on us. Remember His mercy and LOVING-kindness know no bounds. Now let’s allow Cousin Sol to take us home with some of his wise words on the topic. ‘Honour the Lord with thy substance (possessions), and with the first fruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses (vats) shall burst out with new wine.’ (Prov.3:9-10) And that my Friends is the gospel, gospel truth! So let’s try and catch up as best we can nuh, starting NOW! Much LOVE!…give to Caesar…the things that belong to him…and to God…the things that belong to Him… (Matt.22:21)
Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 December 2012 Psalm 116:7
08 Dec 2012 Leave a comment
in Inspirational Living Tags: abundance, bountiful, Comforter, confidence, distress, good times, grace, gracious Lord, grateful hearts, hearts, heavy burdens, inclement weather, joy, LOVE, loving kindness, merciful, mercy, minds, praise, prosperity, provider, rest, righteousness., sincerity, sing unto the Lord, souls, thanks, trust, truth
Psalm 116:7. Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee.
Ah Friends, it’s another grey, cloudy, rainy morning in my neck of the woods. But despite the inclement weather, life is good, and for that we are all very grateful. Therefore, let’s raise a mighty shout of joy to heaven, praising and thanking the Lord God Jehovah for His goodness, LOVING-kindness and mercy towards the undeserving children of men. And all God’s people declared in loud voice, with grateful hearts: ‘Almighty God, we praise You, and bless Your Holy Name, for all you’ve done and are planning to do for us!’ And we find a poignant example of praise for God’s goodness in Psalm 116, Praise for deliverance from death. ‘I LOVE the Lord, because he hath heard my voice and my supplications. Because he hath inclined his ear unto me (hath listened to me), therefore will I call upon him as long as I live. The sorrows of death compassed (surrounded) me, and the pains (distress) of hell gat (laid) hold upon me: I found trouble and sorrow. Then called I upon the name of the Lord; O Lord, I beseech thee, deliver my soul. Gracious is the Lord, and righteous, yea, our God is merciful. The Lord preserveth the simple: I was brought low, and he helped (saved) me.’ (Ps.116:1-6) Yes Friends, the Lord of hosts is our refuge, our hiding place, our rock, our shield, our provider, our comforter! In times of want and trouble, He is the first One we ought to call upon. Now don’t forget to give Him thanks and praise in the good times too. So in other words, believers ought to be doing as Bruh Paul advised the Ephesians: ‘Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;’ (Eph.5:20) And not only that, but also as He told the Philippians: ‘Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.’ (Phil.4:4) Oh my people, whatever life brings us, lemons or honey, we ought to rejoice and give thanks to our great God! It’s as simple as that. Note I didn’t say easy, but with God’s help and some practice, it’s certainly doable. That’s why the psalmist in our Bit today, could say with great confidence and joy: ‘Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee.’ That Friends, is the wonderful modus operandi of our God; dealing bountifully with those who cry out to Him in all sincerity and truth! But far too many of us are too proud, stubborn, rebellious and independent to ask for help, as Jeremiah shows, when talking about the destruction of Judah. ‘Thus saith the Lord, stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.’ (Jer.6:16) Oh what stupidity we embrace my brethren when we refuse to walk in the traditional ways of true righteousness! Doing our own thing only leads to disaster and destruction. But our God LOVES us so much, that even when we blatantly ignore Him and choose to go our own way, He still doesn’t give up on us. Listen to Jesus with this great invitation: ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (from) me; for I am meek (gentle) and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt.11:28-30) Oh Friends, there’s no better invitation than that to be found anywhere in this whole wide world. For who doesn’t want rest for their weary soul in this evil, ungodly, tiresome, fraudulent, busy world? And Jesus is willing to bear our heavy burdens, like He bore the cross all the way to Calvary, and our sins all the way to eternity. So why are we so reluctant, or should I say adamant in not putting our trust in Him eh, especially when we see the sorry state of our world, because we have placed our trust in unworthy, unfaithful man? Fellow believers, it’s time to put our utmost and entire trust in Jesus, since He is the only one who can help us escape from the deep mire in which we’re now wallowing. In Psalm 119, the psalmist wisely asked the Lord to ‘Deal bountifully with thy servant, that I may live, and keep thy word. Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.’ (Ps.119:17-18) Those are the kinds of things we ought to be asking for Friends; the ability to live righteously and abide in His Word, discernment and focus through His Holy Spirit, so that we can understand and enjoy all the wonderful things that He’s provided for us in His law. When we do those things, then like the second half of our Bit, we’ll be able to say in all truth, that the Lord has dealt bountifully with us. And like Bruh David, we can also confidently declare: ‘I will sing unto the Lord, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.’ (Ps.13:6) Yes my people, when we diligently and sincerely seek the Lord and try to do His will, then He deals bountifully with us, even more bountifully than we can ask or imagine! So what’s holding us back eh? Let’s come to the Lord today in all diligence and sincerity, surrender our lives to Him, rest under His strong, protective wings, that we may find the peace and joy He’s faithfully promised, and last but not least, enjoy the prosperity and abundance that comes to those who open their hearts, minds and souls to Him. That’s wisdom at its zenith, my brethren! Much LOVE!…to know, know, know Him…is to LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Him…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 26 September 2012 Psalm 130:7
26 Sep 2012 Leave a comment
in Inspirational Living Tags: abundance, blessings, compassion, encouragement, forgiveness, god, God's image, graciousness, LOVE, mercy, redemption, rend your heart, right heart, seek God, sincerity, strong faith, trials, tribulations
Psalm 130:7. Let Israel hope in the Lord: for with the Lord there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption.
Oh mih people, it’s a brand new day, with brand new mercies, blessings and forgiveness from our wonderful God! Wow! What a God! So let’s rejoice and be thankful in it nuh. And all God’s people shouted a loud and grateful, ‘Praise ye the Lord, for He is worthy to be praised!’ Yes Friends, our God is indeed worthy of all the praise we are capable of giving, and then some more, for He’s promised that all who come to Him in sincerity of heart will be accepted, LOVED and cared for until eternity. That’s why I’m telling you today, that ‘In dreams and in LOVE, there are no impossibilities!’ Now I don’t remember where I got that quote from, but it’s been up on my office wall, in big red letters, for the longest time, and after noticing it earlier on today, I decided to share it with you. At times like these, I ask myself why put up all those words of encouragement around the office, when I don’t pay any attention to them? I guarantee that there’s enough stuff on the walls, my desk, and my filing cabinet to encourage me in whatever situation is necessary. But do I go to them, as I should, when my spirit is at low ebb, or do I even read them as I pass by them everyday? No. And as I look over to the wall on my right, I notice a calendar that’s still turned to May, while we’re in September, almost October. Hn! I have an excuse for that though; two other smaller calendars on my desk. (smile) But that calendar still shouldn’t be saying May in September, when I pass by it quite a few times everyday. Anyway friends, please don’t be like me. If you put up stuff to encourage you, then read them, so that you’ll be encouraged, otherwise it’s a waste of time and effort. And I promise to do better also. (smile) Now let’s turn to our Bit. ‘Let Israel hope in the Lord: for with the Lord there is mercy (LOVING-kindness), and with him is plenteous (abundant) redemption.’ Yesterday we dealt with the first part that speaks of HOPE in the Lord. Today we’ll check out the second half that talks about His mercy, LOVING-kindness and plentiful redemption. And believe me Friends, our God is full to overflowing with all those things. If we live till eternity, we’ll never see the end of His awesome cache of mercy and redemption because that’s simply a part of His nature. And it would certainly stand us in good stead if we developed some of those attributes ourselves, for we’re supposed to be a reflection of our Creator, made in His own image, which means we also need to have plenty mercy and forgiveness. Now let’s check out some scriptures that validate the truthfulness of the second half of our Bit. We’ll start with Psalm 86, a prayer of Bruh David, when he bemoans: ‘Teach me thy way O Lord.’ In verse 5, he declares with strong faith: ‘For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.’ (Ps.86:5) Then again in verse 15, he staunchly declares the goodness and mercy of our God. ‘But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, long-suffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth.’ (Ps.86:15) Ah mih breddren, I don’t know what would become of us with our sinful, rebellious nature if our God wasn’t so kind, patient and merciful with us nuh. Next we’ll turn to Psalm 145, where Bruh David talks about the Lord’s graciousness. He states these facts with utter certainty. ‘The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy. The Lord is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.’ (Ps.145:8-9) There is no hint of doubt in them Friends, because Bruh David lived them; saw and experienced the mercy, kindness and compassion of the faithful God of his fathers. So if Bruh David, a man like us with plenty faults, and bigger problems than we’ll ever encounter, can put his trust in and depend wholeheartedly on the Most High God, why can’t we do likewise eh? Please remember though that the Lord didn’t just flood Bruh David with His mercies and kindness, he had to work and struggle too, with the many personal enemies, including Saul and his own son Absalom, plus those of His nation Israel. But whatever came against him, he stood strong and firm in his faith, and for that the Lord considered him righteous. Please note my brethren that Bruh David’s heart was right from the very beginning, as Samuel told Saul when the Lord took away the kingdom from him. ‘The Lord hath sought him a man after his own heart.’ (1 Sam.13:14) We obviously have to clean up our own hearts too, and bring them into right standing with God, before we can expect a whole lot of good stuff to happen to us, amongst all the trials and tribulations we’re normally going to bear in this sinful world, and even more so as followers of Jesus, since that’s where the Lord looks before He decides how to react to our prayers and actions. Hn! A sentence worthy of Bruh Paul. (smile) As Isaiah so rightly proclaims: ‘Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.’ (Is.55:6-7) Oh my people, there is NO God like ours; Jehovah, the ONE, TRUE GOD, Creator and Controller of the universe and all therein! Please believe that and act accordingly. And we’ll end with some more wonderful words on the nature of our God from the prophet Joel, when he called Israel to repentance. ‘Therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning; And rend (tear) your heart, and not your garments, and turn (return) unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great (LOVING) kindness, and repenteth him of the evil (relents from doing harm).’ (Joel 2:12-13) Yes Friends, that’s the wonderful Deity that we serve and worship! But as His word dictates, we have to draw near to Him, seek Him with all our hearts, minds, bodies and souls, if we want to enjoy His many blessings and mercies. Much LOVE!…let him who has ears…hear and repent…or he will eventually feel…the might of God’s wrath…
SCRIP-BITS 