Today’s Scrip-Bit   3 September 2023   2 Corinthians 5:21.

2 Corinthians 5:21.       For he (God the Father) hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

And this Labour Day Sunday is indeed a glorious day in my neighborhood, all sunshine and blue skies!  A day that makes you want to get up and head for the Lord’s sanctuary so that you can enjoy the wonderful camaraderie involved there, worshipping and singing the praises of our great God, and being refilled with Hs Holy Spirit! But even if your day is not as glorious as mine, it is still the best decision, the wisest decision you can ever make, to get up and join your fellow believers in the Lord’s house. 

And as always, we begin with a song of praise, but today we going way down South, to T&T, Trinidad and Tobago for some sweet West Indian Gospel music, the sweetest gospel music there is. (smile) Now, a friend wrote me this past week and sent me two songs by Denyse Plummer, the former soca artiste turned Christian performer, also telling me that we should celebrate Denyse. So mih people,  it’s a chutney soca Sunday, the reworking of her earlier hit ‘Na Leaving,’ about all the good things in T&T, into a Christian song titled ‘Ah Cyar Leave Him!’ 

So, let’s raise the roof with our sacrificial praise, as we tell the world, and heaven too, in no uncertain terms that we can’t leave Jesus. And as the sweet, easy rocking chutney soca music start, we hear a couple bars, then we shout out ‘Jesus…Yahweh…Yeshua… Jahovah! From revelry to righteousness…Cyar leave Him. From hell-bound to holiness…Cyar leave Him. From sin to salvation…Cyar leave him. A kingdom destination…Cyar leave Him. There I was, in my glee, wallowing deep in a pig pen, full of life, but so empty, on my way to a fiery end. 

But someone told me about a Saviour, who said He LOVES me and He cares. In times of storm He is my shelter, so in His arms you’ll find me there. Yuh see ah cyar live life without Him, He is my King of Kings, He’s the reason I’m still living. Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. Never condemn or forsaken me dread…Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. For God man I living, For God I go dead. There are so few, who made it through, and come from the darkness of this world. But I saw the light, I found the truth. I have more than silver, more than gold. I gave my life over to Jesus, the greatest decision I’ve made. Boy I recommend you try Him, Jesus is the best upgrade. 

He came to earth and died on the cross, rose up just like a boss, when yuh see me smiling, He’s the cause. Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. Never condemn or forsaken me dread…Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. For God man I living, For God I go dead. I am under the rock. The rock is higher than I. Jahovah hides me. I am under the rock. Go tell my enemies, that I am under the rock. Jahovah hides me, I am under the rock. I am under the rock. The rock is higher than I. Jahovah hides me. I am under the rock. Go tell my enemies, that I am under the rock. Jahovah hides me, I am under the rock. 

From revelry to righteousness…Cyar leave Him. From hell-bound to holiness…Cyar leave Him. From sin to salvation…Cyar leave him. A kingdom destination…Cyar leave Him. Jesus…Yahweh…Yeshua… Jahovah! (And we shout again) Jesus…Yahweh…Yeshua… Jahovah!’  

Oh friends, wasn’t that beautiful? It certainly was. The whole house, including heaven was rocking! The Father was definitely feeling it, because He was up and jiving. He couldn’t be happier hearing such praises shouted out from earth for His Son. Even Jesus couldn’t resist the tantalizing riddims, and you could see Him tapping His feet and drumming His hands on the hand rests of the throne. And yuh better believe that is the kind of difference, the amazing transformation Jesus performs in our lives when we surrender our all to Him! 

And furthermore, once we get with Him, it’s impossible to leave Him! No, we just cyar leave him at all at all. Mama Mia! Such is the LOVE and inspiration He inspires in us! Yes friends, Jesus carries us from a sinful life to one of salvation, for He came to earth and died on the cross of Calvary so that our sins could be paid for with the shedding of His precious, sinless blood, and thus be saved from hellfire and damnation. As He said: ‘For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved.’ (John 3:17) 

And by dying on the cross, He not only saved us from eternal damnation, but also made us new people and reconciled us to the Father. Hear Bruh Paul tell it nuh. ‘Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (creation): old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit (that is), that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.’ (2 Cor. 17-19) 

Yes, Christ promoted a reconciliation between sinful mankind and a holy and righteous God. Christ also made us righteous and justified. And what is righteousness. This commentary puts it nicely. ‘In its deeper spiritual meaning, righteousness is the quality of being right in the eyes of God, including character (nature), conscience (attitude), conduct (action), and command (word). Righteousness is, therefore, based upon God’s standard because He is the ultimate Lawgiver (Isaiah 33:22).’ And Bruh Paul writes to the church at Corinth: ‘For he (God the Father) hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.’ (2 Cor. 5:21) 

Oh mih people, Christ not only paid for our sins through the shedding of His blood, but He also took the whole weight of our sins on His sinless shoulders so we could become righteous in the Father’s sight. And Christ also justified us. And what’s justification? Hear this commentary. ‘Justification is that gracious and judicial act of God whereby a soul is granted complete absolution from all guilt and a full release from the penalty of sin (Romans 3:23-25). This act of divine grace is wrought by faith in the merits of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (Romans 5:1).’ 

And what do those scriptures say? ‘For all have sinned, and come (fallen) short of the glory of God. being justified freely (without any cost) by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation (a mercy seat) through faith in his blood, to declare (yesss!!!) (demonstrate) his righteousness for the remission (passing over) of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God.’ (Rom. 3:23-25) 

And Romans 5:1, says: ‘Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.’ In other words, ‘Christ made justification possible for us by what He did in His death and resurrection. His resurrection was the ultimate sign that the penalty for sin, which was death, had been paid once and for all.’ 

And that’s not all Christ did for us. Listen to Bruh Paul again: ‘But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us (became for us) wisdom and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.’ (1 Cor. 1:30) And we don’t have time nor space to get into those last two, but sanctification is basically being set aside for God’s purposes, while redemption is being saved from sin, which Jesus did in spades…if we’ll only believe in Him. 

Now tell me nuh my fellow saints, how can one ever leave a man, or a God like that eh? No way Jose! And for all you computer geeks out there, please remember that Jesus IS the best upgrade! (smile) So please, let’s upgrade to Him today nuh! Much LOVE!

…if you truly believe in Jesus…then despite all your trials and tribulation…you’ll NEVER EVER leave Him…because He’s the BEST THING that there is…. 

 Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ            

Today’s Scrip-Bit   30 April 2023 Psalm 91:2.

Psalm 91:2.      I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.

The bell’s ringing friends, the last bell to boot, so hurry up, else you’ll be late for church, and yuh know the minister doesn’t like people coming in late and disrupting the service! (smile) Ah mih people, I wonder how many of us are still around who remember when the bells would toll to indicate that church was about to begin. If I remember correctly, there were three bells at different intervals, but it was so long ago that I could be wrong, (smile) and those of us who lived close by to the church would wait until the last bell began ringing before we hurried out to get there just in time. 

Unfortunately, there are no more bells now to give us an inkling of the time left for gathering to worship. That’s too old fashioned and makes too much noise, disrupting the peace of the neighbourhood. Thus, nowadays many of us consistently stroll in late, claiming it doesn’t matter. But it does matter if you are consistently missing the beginning aspects of worship. Anyway, since the numbers attending church are much, much less than they used to be, let’s just give thanks that the latecomers are late rather than absent. 

And today we going to open the service with some sweet West Indian gospel, the sweetest gospel music in the world! Yes, I am biased, but it is the truth! (smile) So let’s buss them up with some chutney soca gospel from a converted calypso singer, Denyse Plummer. It’s a rework of an earlier secular chutney soca hit, ‘Na Leaving,’ which celebrated all the good things of T&T, that those who were leaving would miss. And it’s obvious that when I first heard those gospel lyrics on top of that beautiful meshing of African and East Indian Riddims that we call chutney soca, I was blown away and just couldn’t get enough of it. 

So, let’s get into the sweet, scintillating up-tempo, island riddims of’ ‘Ah Cyar Leave Him.’  Obviously, we talking about Jesus there. And we all know that once you’re truly acquainted with Him, it’s impossible to ever leave him. So, please let those sacrificial praises rise up to heaven in harmonious unison. And as the sweet, easy rocking chutney soca music start, we hear a couple bars, then we shout out: ‘Jesus…Yahweh…Yeshua… Jahovah! From revelry to righteousness…Cyar leave Him. From hell-bound to holiness…Cyar leave Him. From sin to salvation…Cyar leave him. A kingdom destination…Cyar leave Him. 

There I was, in my glee, wallowing deep in a pig pen, full of life, but so empty, on my way to a fiery end. But someone told me about a Saviour, who said He LOVES me and He cares. In times of storm He is my shelter, so in His arms you’ll find me there. Yuh see ah cyar live life without Him, He is my King of Kings, He’s the reason I’m still living. Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. Never condemn or forsaken me dread…Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. For God man I living, For God I go dead. 

There are so few, who made it through, and come from the darkness of this world. But I saw the light, I found the truth. I have more than silver, more than gold. I gave my life over to Jesus, the greatest decision I’ve made. Boy I recommend you try Him, Jesus is the best upgrade. He came to earth and died on the cross, rose up just like a boss, when yuh see me smiling, He’s the cause. Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. Never condemn or forsaken me dread…Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. For God man I living, For God I go dead. 

I am under the rock. The rock is higher than I. Jahovah hides me. I am under the rock. Go tell my enemies, that I am under the rock. Jahovah hides me, I am under the rock. The rock is higher than I. Jahovah hides me. From revelry to righteousness…Cyar leave Him. From hell-bound to holiness…Cyar leave Him. From sin to salvation…Cyar leave him. A kingdom destination…Cyar leave Him. Jesus…Yahweh…Yeshua… Jahovah! (And we shout again) Jesus…Yahweh…Yeshua… Jahovah!’  

Oh friends, oh friends, who say West Indian gospel ain’t sweet eh? Tell them deh lie! It so sweet, that the whole of heaven was rocking along with us. Even Jesus and the Father were enjoying themselves. Wow! And yuh know what my people,, the lyrics are simple and self-explanatory. ‘From revelry to righteousness… From hell-bound to holiness… From sin to salvation… A kingdom destination…’ That says it all. When one accepts Jesus as Lord and Saviour, that’s how it works; your whole life is turned right around. 

When we wallowing gleefully in the pig pen, but spiritually empty and on the way to hellfire and damnation, Jesus comes and takes us out of the pig pen, like the Prodigal Son, takes us home to His house, cleans us up and fills us with His Holy Spirit. And please note how we usually hear about Jesus; someone tells u about Him. And that’s what we ought to be about as His true followers; His Great Commission to evangelize the world!  And we all know that when we come to Jesus, He takes us out of darkness into the light, calms our fears and any storms in which we’re caught. He becomes a rock and refuge for us when enemies come against us. 

And most importantly He never condemns or forsakes, just takes us however we come to Him and makes us over into His own image. That’s why we can never leave him, once we truly know Him. And there are so many scriptures that emphasize all those attributes that we only have space and time for a few, like this one from Psalm 91. ‘He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 

I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver me from the snare of the fowler (bird trapper), and from the noisesome (deadly or perilous) pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shall thou trust (take refuge): his truth shall be thy shield and buckler (small shield).’ (Ps. 91:1-5) Oh, my brethren, there’s’ no fear, or rather there’s oodles of courage when one is walking with the Lord.

And Isaiah tells us: ‘But now thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by name; thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon (scorch) thee. For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee (in thy place). Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable (honoured), and I have LOVED thee: therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life.’ (Is. 43:1-4) 

And we’ll conclude with these marvellous words of trust and confidence from Bruh David in Psalm 27: ‘The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life of whom shall I be afraid? When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up (devour) my flesh, they stumbled and fell. Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident.’ (Ps. 27:1-3) 

Oh my fellow believers, that’s the kind of trust we need to have in our Triune God, and why it makes no sense whatsoever to even consider leaving Jesus. For where would we be without Him eh? Nowhere, but on the fiery road to hell! Much LOVE

…with Jesus in our corner…there’s no need to fear…or want for anything…  

 Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ              

Today’s Scrip-Bit   15 May 2022 Mark 4:39.

Mark 4:39.      He arose, and rebuked the wind and said unto the sea, ‘Peace, be still. And the wind  ceased, and there was a great calm.

Come one, come all friends, on this the Lord’s Day, let’s get together and worship His Holy Name in sincerity and truth! Be it physically in the sanctuary or technologically from home, our location doesn’t matter because praise and worship of Almighty God transcends time and space. And so, without further ado, on this beautiful summer Sunday, let’s get down to worship with a beautiful gospel song from down South. And I don’t care if you call me prejudiced, I will always maintain that the best gospel music comes from the West Indies. (smile) 

And to prove the point, today’s song is a reworked secular chutney soca hit of Miss Denise Plummer, once upon a time the high priestess of soca, who turned her eyes and heart to Christ and began singing gospel music. The song was originally called ‘Na Leaving,’ which celebrated all the good things of T&T, that those who were leaving would miss. From the first time I heard it, it became one of my favourite soca songs, and not only for the lyrics, but also for the beautiful meshing of the African and East Indian riddims that we call chutney soca. 

Then when a friend sent me a copy of this reworked favourite with gospel lyrics, I was blown away, and just had to sing it. So, let’s do so again right now nuh. Let’s allow the riddim to take us away, to work up in our souls, as we sincerely raise our voices in sacrificial praise and mouth the beautiful, true lyrics. 

And after the first couple of bars of rocking chutney soca music, we shout out: ‘Jesus…Yahweh…Yeshua… Jahovah! From revelry to righteousness…Cyar leave Him. From hell-bound to holiness…Cyar leave Him. From sin to salvation…Cyar leave him. A kingdom destination…Cyar leave Him. There I was, in my glee, wallowing deep in a pig pen, full of life, but so empty, on my way to a fiery end. 

But someone told me about a Saviour, who said He LOVES me and He cares. In times of storm He is my shelter, so in His arms you’ll find me there. Yuh see ah cyar live life without Him, He is my King of Kings, He’s the reason I’m still living. Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. Never condemn or forsaken me dread…Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. For God man I living, For God I go dead. 

There are so few, who made it through, and come from the darkness of this world. But I saw the light, I found the truth. I have more than silver, more than gold. I gave my life over to Jesus, the greatest decision I’ve made. Boy I recommend you try Him, Jesus is the best upgrade. He came to earth and died on the cross, rose up just like a boss, when yuh see me smiling, He’s the cause. Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. Never condemn or forsaken me dread…Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. 

For God man I living, For God I go dead. I am under the rock. The rock is higher than I. Jahovah hides me. I am under the rock. Go tell my enemies, that I am under the rock. Jahovah hides me, I am under the rock. I am under the rock. The rock is higher than I. Jahovah hides me. I am under the rock. Go tell my enemies, that I am under the rock. Jahovah hides me, I am under the rock. 

From revelry to righteousness…Cyar leave Him. From hell-bound to holiness…Cyar leave Him. From sin to salvation…Cyar leave him. A kingdom destination…Cyar leave Him. Jesus…Yahweh…Yeshua… Jahovah! (And we shout again) Jesus…Yahweh…Yeshua… Jahovah!’  

Ah mih people, that was fantastic…and all heaven was rocking with us too! Because the music was so sweet, (smile) and they know that’s the kind of difference, the amazing transformation Jesus brings about in our lives when we surrender our all to Him! And yuh better believe that Denise’s words are the gospel truth! Once we get with Jesus, we just cyar leave Him. It’s impossible to leave Him! 

How yuh go do that eh, when He takes you from ‘revelry to righteousness, from hell-bound to holiness, from sin to salvation, from wallowing in a pig pen, heading for a fiery end,’ and took you out of the darkness and showed you the bright light of His awesome LOVE and compassion? Anyone who even thinks about leaving Jesus after all of that is not only a fool, but extremely crazy. Who else could be your successful shelter in the time of storm eh? Nobody! 

Because Jesus Himself controls the wind and the waves. And He proved that out on the sea of Galilee when a storm was kicking up an unholy ruckus and the disciples were scared to death, but Jesus was quietly asleep in the stern of the boast despite all the confusion around Him. And when the disciples woke Him, ‘He arose, and rebuked the wind and said unto the sea, ‘Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.’ Then He chided the disciples: ‘Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?’ (Mark 4:39-40) 

And it’s certain sure that when you find Jesus, you see the light and find the truth, because He is the way, the truth, the life, the light…and everything else that’s good and wonderful! That’s why Denise says, ‘He’s the best upgrade.’ No friends, you can’t get any better than Jesus in this universe. That’s why after giving His life for us on the cross, He could also rise up ‘like a boss’ from the grave, having defeated Satan and his hellish dominion on their own turf. 

Oh my people, giving your life over to Jesus is the best decision you could ever make, because then you become a child of God, a joint heir with Christ and thus entitled to all the benefits of heaven! Wow! What more can we ask eh? Absolutely nothing! And when yuh enemies looking for you, you can boast and make style on them because they can’t touch you, since you’re hiding under the rock of Jahovah, the rock that’s higher than you. Mama Yo! 

I don’t know what else to say nuh mih bredrin, except to invite you to come and hide under the rock with me, because when you put your safety and security in Jesus hands, He most definitely won’t allow your enemies to touch you. Because He’s the boss, the rock, the mighty conqueror, and the reason we still living! Much LOVE!

…on Christ the solid rock I stand…all else is simply sinking sand… 

 Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8​     

Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 January 2021 John 8:12.

John 8:12.     I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

Once again it is time to come together my brethren to celebrate the Lord’s Day, as we’ve been instructed to do. So please gather round your technological devices and let’s have virtual church since physical church has been shut down due to the Corona virus pandemic, with many strains now proliferating in our world. But widespread as it is, the virus will not stop us from praising God and giving Him much thanks on a Sunday morning. 

And, as we are wont to do every Sunday, let’s begin with a song of praise and thanksgiving, one of my recent real, real favourites. It’s the Denise Plummer rework of her earlier soca chutney hit ‘Na Leaving,’ done up in gospel language, and now titled ‘Ah Cyar Leave Him.’ which is the gospel truth mih people. And I remember the first time I heard this reworking of one of my favourite soca songs, both lyrics and music, I almost went crazy. (smile) Yeh friends, music has the habit of doing that to me. 

Anyway, enough talk – no wonder they say I talk too much. Let’s get to the singing. And remember, is a nice, easy rocking chutney soca riddim, a mixture of African and East Indian music, but with plenty feeling and movement. So after the first few bars, with the Indian tassa drum pounding in the background, we shout out: ‘Jesus…Yahweh…Yeshua… Jahovah! From revelry to righteousness…Cyar leave Him. From hell-bound to holiness…Cyar leave Him. From sin to salvation…Cyar leave him. A kingdom destination…Cyar leave Him. 

There I was, in my glee, wallowing deep in a pig pen, full of life, but so empty, on my way to a fiery end. But someone told me about a Saviour, who said He LOVES me and He cares. In times of storm He is my shelter, so in His arms you’ll find me there. Yuh see ah cyar live life without Him, He is my King of Kings, He’s the reason I’m still living. Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. Never condemn or forsaken me dread…Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. For God man I living, For God I go dead. 

There are so few, who made it through, and come from the darkness of this world. But I saw the light, I found the truth. I have more than silver, more than gold. I gave my life over to Jesus, the greatest decision I’ve made. Boy I recommend you try Him, Jesus is the best upgrade. He came to earth and died on the cross, rose up just like a boss, when yuh see me smiling, He’s the cause. Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. Never condemn or forsaken me dread…Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. For God man I living, For God I go dead. 

I am under the rock. The rock is higher than I. Jahovah hides me. I am under the rock. Go tell my enemies, that I am under the rock. Jahovah hides me, I am under the rock. I am under the rock. The rock is higher than I. Jahovah hides me. I am under the rock. Go tell my enemies, that I am under the rock. Jahovah hides me, I am under the rock. From revelry to righteousness…Cyar leave Him. From hell-bound to holiness…Cyar leave Him. From sin to salvation…Cyar leave him. A kingdom destination…Cyar leave Him. Jesus…Yahweh…Yeshua… Jahovah! (And we shout again) Jesus…Yahweh…Yeshua… Jahovah!’ 

Oh mih people, mih people, ah see yuh moving with plenty energy as the music touch yuh soul, and the lyrics ring out with indisputable truth and touch yuh heart! The same thing was happening in heaven too mih bredrin! And that’s how it ought to be, because our Jesus is everything that the song says…and more too! 

Just look at how coming to know Him does change us nuh: From worldly revelry, we turn to righteousness; from heading straight for hell, we get holy, and doh talk about how He wash away we sins through His death and resurrection and give us salvation, destined for heaven! Glory be! Yeh, Jesus rose up strong and vibrant, just like the awesome Boss He is! Brother, how yuh go beat that eh? NO WAY Jose! He is indeed our King of Kings, as well as Lord of Lords; the highest name in the universe, right after that of the Father, to which all knees will someday bow and proclaim Him Lord of all, with much glory to the Father. 

And yes friends, when we wallowing deep in our pig pen of misery, looking hell and Satan straight in the face, is ONLY Jesus who has the ability to pull us out from that dreadful mire. That’s because He’s a Saviour, He gives us a reason for living, takes us out of the darkness of this world and shows us the light, the bright, shining light that He is. That’s why He could proclaim in all truth: ‘I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.’ (John 8:12) 

And once you put your hand in His hand, and your trust in His promises, then your eyes are opened to the sinful reality of this world, and you never want to go back to the dark state you were previously in. Oh bless His holy name my people for He is indeed our EVERYTHING! 

And to verify, to corroborate all of that, remember this other proclamation: ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.’ (John 14: 6) That means mih bredrin that Jesus is the way, the truth, the life and the light! So when you come to Him, you find all of that! Oh Bubba! What else can we ask of Him eh? NOTHING! Who else can truthfully make those claims eh? NOBODY! 

But yuh know what precious people, our Jesus is even plenty more than that. He’s our shelter in the time of storm. Hear how Isaiah puts it nuh: ‘ 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 (ruthless) ones is as a storm against a wall.’ (Is. 25:4) How can you beat that eh friends? You can’t! 

And then He never condemns us, just shows us the error of our ways, and has also promised never to leave or forsake us. (Heb. 13:5) And furthermore, when our enemies looking for us, Jesus going to hide us, for He is our Rock, our fortress, our strong refuge! Yuh see how He hide Bruh David although Saul was all out to get Him? Friends that’s the same thing He will do for all those who believe and trust in Him. And yuh see what He says about our enemies? They shall come against us one way, but flee seven different ways. (Deut. 28:7) 

Oh my fellow saints in Christ, there’s a lot more we can say about our Lord and Saviour, but we don’t have time nor space. Suffice it to say, He is the biggest difference maker our world has ever seen, and once we surrender our lives to Him, such an amazing, mind boggling transformation comes over us, that it’s just becomes impossible for us to leave Him after that. Such is the LOVE, compassion, inspiration, assurance and comfort that He provides, that’s why we’re willing to both live and die for Him. And the only appropriate thing for us to do now, is to go home singing ‘Ah Cyar Leave Him…Ah Cyar Leave Him…No ah just cyar leave Him…’ Much LOVE!

…remember…Jesus is the Rock…His work is perfect… a God of truth…just and right is He… (Deut. 32:4)

Today’s Scrip-Bit 13 September 2020 Psalm 37:4.

Psalm 37:4.     ​Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. 

The day is here at last friends; the day when the Anglican church finally reopens its doors to their sanctuaries to have physical worship. Yes, it’s been five long months of technological worship while the sanctuaries lay quiet and dormant, some thought even dead! (smile) But the reawakening has eventually come, though with all the physical distancing and cleansing mandated by the authorities. 

No hugging and shaking hands and masks are compulsory. Even the Eucharist has been changed up; no wine, just the wafer dropped into your hands by the priest with no bodily contact, and still physical distancing between believers as they approach the altar. And no kneeling at the altar either. Neither no singing. Only a soloist with a mask on, or the choir technologically beamed in. 

Chuh! Some people might think the restrictions are too much and not worth the effort, while others will be overjoyed to have worship in church again. Anyway, to celebrate this auspicious occasion, the Lord decreed this special song for today’s worship. It’s by former star calypsonian Denyse Plummer turned Christian artist. It’s a rework of her earlier secular chutney soca hit, ‘Na Leaving,’ which celebrated all the good things of T&T, that those who were leaving there would miss. 

From the first time I heard it, it became one of my favourite soca songs, and not only for the very descriptive lyrics, but also for the beautiful meshing, the impeccable melding of the African and East Indian riddims that we call chutney soca. So you can imagine when a few day ago, a friend sent me a copy of this reworked favourite with gospel lyrics, it was automatic that we should sing it this week. And isn’t it interesting how so many of the big secular artists are turning to gospel music nowadays. Some of them are even doing better than when they were singing the secular stuff, and if not financially, certainly in their soul and LOVE WALK. (smile) 

Anyway, enough talk, let’s get to the sacrificial shout of praise.  And as the sweet, soulful, easy rocking chutney soca music starts, we hear a couple bars, then we shout out ‘Jesus…Yahweh…Yeshua… Jahovah! From revelry to righteousness…Cyar leave Him. From hell-bound to holiness…Cyar leave Him. From sin to salvation…Cyar leave him. A kingdom destination…Cyar leave Him. There I was, in my glee, wallowing deep in a pig pen, full of life, but so empty, on my way to a fiery end. But someone told me about a Saviour, who said He LOVES me and He cares. 

In times of storm He is my shelter, so in His arms you’ll find me there. Yuh see ah cyar live life without Him, He is my King of Kings, He’s the reason I’m still living. Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. Never condemn or forsaken me dread…Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. For God man I living, For God I go dead. There are so few, who made it through, and come from the darkness of this world. But I saw the light, I found the truth. I have more than silver, more than gold. I gave my life over to Jesus, the greatest decision I’ve made. Boy I recommend you try Him, Jesus is the best upgrade. 

He came to earth and died on the cross, rose up just like a boss, when yuh see me smiling, He’s the cause. Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. Never condemn or forsaken me dread…Ah cyar leave Him…ah cyar leave Him. For God man I living, For God I go dead. I am under the rock. The rock is higher than I. Jahovah hides me. I am under the rock. Go tell my enemies, that I am under the rock. Jahovah hides me, I am under the rock. I am under the rock. The rock is higher than I. Jahovah hides me. I am under the rock. Go tell my enemies, that I am under the rock. Jahovah hides me, I am under the rock. 

From revelry to righteousness…Cyar leave Him. From hell-bound to holiness…Cyar leave Him. From sin to salvation…Cyar leave him. A kingdom destination…Cyar leave Him. Jesus…Yahweh…Yeshua… Jahovah! (And we shout again) Jesus…Yahweh…Yeshua… Jahovah!’ 

Wow mih people, what a rocking piece of worship! Please check it out on YouTube. Now yuh better believer all heaven was celebrating too, because they know the truth of those awesome words. And yes, yuh better believe that is the kind of difference, the amazing transformation Jesus performs in our lives when we surrender our all to Him! And yuh know what? Once we get with Him, it’s impossible to leave Him! No, we just cyar leave him at all at all. Mama Mia! Such is the LOVE and inspiration He inspires in us! 

There isn’t an untrue statement in that song. Jesus moves us from sin to salvation, to that kingdom destination of heaven. And just like the prodigal son of whom He spoke, when He finds us in the pig pen, He takes us out, washes and cleanses us, because He LOVES and cares for us so much. He doesn’t condemn not forsake us. In fact He came to earth and died so that we could receive forgiveness and reconciliation. In times of storm He is our shelter, so where else yuh expect to find us eh? In His arms, under the solid rock that He is, which is so much higher than us. 

And there are so few that find the light that He is, and come out of their darkness, so when yuh find the truth, which He also is, yuh must end up with more than silver or gold! And no fooling, the best decision we can ever make is to give our lives over to Jesus; cause He’s the best upgrade! Yuh see how He rose from the grave, just like a boss? That tells you He is the best upgrade you can ever get; the upgrade of all upgrades! So when you consider all of that, how yuh go leave Him eh? NO WAY! Instead we going to run and tell we enemies all about Him, so they could come and meet Him and enjoy the same benefits. 

And the scripture to which I was led to describe all of that was Psalm 37 – The true state of the wicked – the immortal words of Bruh David. Please pray them with me nuh: ‘Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the 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 (feed on His faithfulness). Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. 

And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgement (justice) as the noonday. Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices (schemes) to pass. Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil (for it only causes harm). For evildoers shall be cut off (destroyed): but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.’ (Ps. 37:1-9) 

And that friends is the gospel truth, and when you receive Christ as your Saviour that is the kind of stuff His Holy Spirit leads you to do. So make that wise decision today nuh, is the best one you could ever make! Much LOVE!

…once yuh find Jesus…yuh cyar ever leave him…He’s so sweet and generous…