19 Oct 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: after the Spirit, all things are become new, Anselm's quotes, cannot please God, carnal mind, carnally minded, challeneged, Christ's lifestyle, compromising, dangerous charade, death, dictators, enmity against God, evil web we weave, except a man be born again, fallen nature, Federal Elections, fool yuh fat, glowing promises, godly principles, he cannot see, he is a new creature, holy spirit, if any man be in Christ, kindergarten, life, LOVE, morally new, more opposition, Nicodemus, no condemnation, nothing happens, old things are passed away, omnibus bills, overrules, peace, politicians, politics, practice to deceive, raison d'etre, reneging on their promises, righteous Christians, Saturday, see the light of day, sleeping in, social media platforms, socio-economic ladder, spin and more spin, spirtually minded, the kingdom of God, the larger the change, the love of power, the more resistance, the power of love, the world will know peace, to change ourselves, unless something is moved, walk not after the flesh
2 Corinthians 5:17. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (creation): old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
‘Sleeping in, sleeping in…that’s what we do on a Saturday morning!’ Yeh people, that’s why so many of us like Saturdays; no getting up early and rushing off to work, we can sleep in and laze away the whole day if we so desire…unless we have young children to look after, or lot’s of house work to do. (smile) But however you take it, Saturday belongs to us! Praise the Lord!
We also need to take a look at the quotes our friend Anselm sent us, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. Hear this first one: ‘Nothing happens unless something is moved.’ And I believe that’s fairly true. If everything stays the same, nothing much will happen. However if something is moved, it’s liable to stir up stuff, either desirable or undesirable.
That leads us to this next quote: ‘The larger the change, the more people will resist it. Thus, make it seem so tiny and trivial that people don’t even realize it.’ And I guess we would all agree on the first part; the bigger and more invasive the change, the more opposition one will get, although one will get some opposition to any change at all, big or small.
And as to the second half, I’m not sure that a serious change can be made so small that people won’t even notice it. That’s because serious change usually comes in big packages, and you do notice big packages. I’d say, if the change is worthwhile, then the size of the package doesn’t really matter.
Although the norm nowadays is for politicians to hide important changes in large omnibus bills covering many things, hoping that you won’t have the time or energy to dig and delve into them that much. Oh the crooked, tangled and evil web we weave, when we practice to deceive! But that’s the politician’s raison d’etre; spin, spin, and more spin!
For example, this Monday is our Federal Election here in Canada and the four political parties involved are making all sorts of glowing promises, but the sad reality is that when one of them gets in power, none, or very little of what they promised will ever see the light of day. And don’t fool yuh fat, they will have some reason that sounds plausible for reneging on their promises.
But let’s move on the next quote, since there’s nothing much we can do about the politicians right now. On a point of interest though, we advocate putting up righteous Christians for election, but most righteous Christians don’t want to become embroiled in the serious and dangerous charade that is politics. And many of those who do get involved, end up compromising their godly principles in the hothouse that is modern politics.
And that’s a good lead in to the next quote: ‘The day the power of LOVE overrules the LOVE of power; the world will know peace.’ Oh how true that is my brethren! The LOVE of power is so prevalent these days, that it’s seen from the top of the socio-economic ladder, where all the leaders now want to be defacto dictators, right down to the bottom, where things like bullying and advantage taking have become serious problems on social media platforms and even in places like kindergarten.
That’s how far the LOVE of power has eclipsed the power of LOVE! And the way things are going, I doubt we’ll see a reversal until Christ comes back and sets up His eternal kingdom. Now here is the last quote, which says:‘When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.’
That’s for sure my people! In a whole lot of situations, the only change that’s possible is ours. We see that in our Christian life all the time. And there’s no better example than when we receive Christ as our Lord and Saviour. As Bruh Paul says in 2 Corinthians: ‘Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (creation): old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.’
Yeh friends, once we accept Christ, we can’t be the same old sinful people that we once were. We have to become new people, morally new and different, change ourselves with the help of the Holy Spirit. Jesus said it to Nicodemus in so many words. ‘Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.’ (John 3:3) That means change is expected, a new beginning has to be made, for Christ’s lifestyle does not mesh with that of the world.
And that lifestyle is simply described by Bruh Paul in his message to the church at Rome. ‘There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.’ (Rom.8:1) Yeh friends, our new lifestyle in Jesus should be walking in the leading and guiding of His Holy Spirit, not that of the flesh.
‘For they that are after the flesh do mind (set their minds on) the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.’ (Rom.8:5-8)
So let’s spend some time pondering that today nuh; whether we are still walking in the flesh, or in the Spirit, and ask the Lord to help us, for the world and it’s sinful ways still offer powerful attractions to our fallen nature. Much LOVE!
…to be in Christ…one must become a new person…
28 Sep 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a sound mind, Anselm's quotes, appreciate His loving-kindness, aspire to inspire us, be of good cheer, big dreams, courage, disgruntled, do it afraid, fear not, feast one's eyes, for a better tomorrow, full potential, Genesis, God is in control, have life abundantly, how do I love thee, hunker down, i have overcome the world, it is your Father's good pleasure, Joyce Meyer, let me count the ways, lifts our spirits, light of the world, little flock, live in fear, LOVE, more powerful, no passion, nothing is impossible, on something beautiful, panicky alarm, peace, playing small, power, put our best foot forward, reminds us of God's greatness, Revelation, salt of the earth, seem impossible, settling for a life, stretch us, supernatural help, the absence of fear, the spirit of fear, tired, to give you the kingdom, tribulation, triump over it, with all the facts, with God, you are capable of living
Luke 12:32. Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
Saturday, oh Saturday, how do I LOVE thee! Let me count the ways: I don’t have to wake up panicky to an alarm and rush out to take children to a babysitter and school, then to a job that I dislike, while sitting in traffic and getting there tired and disgruntled. I don’t have to spend 8 hours working with people who are mostly jerks. I suppose they think I’m one too, but that’s okay.
I don’t have to clean the house, do laundry or take the children out, if I don’t want to. And if the children aren’t happy with that state of affairs, then I can drop them off at their grandparents who will just LOVE to entertain them for the day, since they seldom see them during the week. Then I can spend the whole day on the couch eating junk food, or in bed with my hubby! And yuh tell me I won’t LOVE you Saturday! No way Jose! (smile)
And since it’s Saturday, let’s see what quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week, as he sincerely aspires to inspire us to a better tomorrow. And I particularly like this one: ‘Always have something beautiful in sight, even if it’s just a daisy in a jelly glass.’
Why? Because it’s just about admiring beautiful things; things that the Lord made just for us to admire, like the beauty of nature and all therein. There’s nothing better than to be able to feast one’s eyes on something beautiful, whatever it may be, because it just lifts our spirits and reminds us of God’s greatness and helps us to truly appreciate His LOVING-kindness towards mankind!
And these next two seem to go together: ‘There is no passion to be found playing small, in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.’… ‘Never give up on what you really want to do. The person with big dreams is more powerful than the one with all the facts.’
Yeh friends, our God didn’t make us to live small, unimportant lives, but to live big ones, with big dreams that will stretch us, dreams that will seem impossible, that will then leads us to partner with Him, to whom nothing is impossible, to make them come true. Remember Jesus came to earth to die, not only to pay for our sins, but also for us to have life, and have it more abundantly. (John 10:10)
And abundant life doesn’t mean living below our capabilities, but trying to reach for the stars, with His help of course! And believe me, too many of us believers are not stretching ourselves to our full potential, merely settling for mediocrity, for merely what life offers, instead of reaching out for what God meant us to have and to be!
But please remember, we’re also supposed to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world! And you can’t make a marked difference unless your salt is indeed salty and spread out, and your light is shining big and bright! (smile) And dreams will always conquer facts, because facts are static and unchangeable, but dreams can be big, wide, far-reaching, changeable, and with the help of the creator of the universe, possible!
That brings us to this next quote: ‘There are things that always seem impossible until they are done.’ And is that ever so true my brethren! How many times in our own lives have we figured or claimed that something is impossible, then we simply hunker down, put our best foot forward, ask for some supernatural help…and voila! There it’s done and no longer impossible!
And I guess here we should note Jesus’ immortal words after making the statement about a camel passing through the eye of a needle to his disciples. (Matt.19:23-25) Obviously they were amazed, as we too are, even now. ‘But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God ALL things are possible.’ (Matt.19:26)
Please friends, please, let’s never forget that: any and everything is indeed possible with our great God, and if it falls within His will for our lives, He will make it possible for us! That’s why we can’t live small, cloistered, non-dreaming lives, but have to reach up and out for what He’s planned for us.
That brings us to this last quote: ‘Courage is not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.’ Yes my people, in this life there will always be some kind of fear in our lives, so talking about its absence is not reality at all. However, that doesn’t mean we can’t have courage, because as Sister Joyce (Joyce Meyer) likes to say, ‘courage is doing it afraid.’ And that’s oh so true!
In this crazy, divisive, evil, wicked, strife-filled, war-torn world, fear is the number one emotion in so many of our lives. And there is cause for some fear even when walking in our own neighbourhoods, but remember that some of the most repeated words in the Good Book are these two simple ones: ‘FEAR NOT!’
From Genesis to Revelation they are used to encourage us not to be afraid, because God knows that fear is a meaningful emotion in human lives, but when we walk compliantly with Him, there is no need to be afraid, because He is in control of EVERYTHING! Thus Jesus’ affirmation to the people when He told them to seek first the kingdom of God: ‘Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.’
It’s simple friends, if we make God our Number ONE priority, we need not fear anything in this whole wide world! And if that didn’t touch you, then listen to Jesus again: ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) And if you can’t truly believe and trust Jesus’ words, what’s the point of calling yourself a believer eh?
And we’ll close with this scripture that all of us know, but not enough actually take to heart. Hear these electrifying words of Bruh Paul to Timothy: ‘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) Therefore my brethren, I implore us, let’s not only remember those powerful and true words, but as of today, let’s action them in our hearts, souls, bodies and minds nuh, for they will certainly stand us in very good stead in this life! Much LOVE!
…believers ought not to be live in fear…but in courage…
31 Aug 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: after one time is two, and the servant of all, Anselm's quotes, as a man thinks in his heart, bad or good outcomes, behave as you believe, believe as you behave, Christ's Church, come the judgement, desire to be first, easily hurt, example, external circumstances, fall for anything, feelings of security, focus on, friend, godly beliefs, gospel truth, happiness, help the poor, if any man, is our strength, Jesus' principles, joy, Labour Day, memories, New York City, our mind is the battelfield, our way of thinking, positive vibration, pride, radiated in life, Satan, save the lost, servant, serve somemone, shall be last of all, so is he, stand for nothing, sticky situation, thank you, the Big Apple, the evil one, the Holy Spirit, the joy of the Lord, the same, the things of God, tried by fire, vulnerable, washed the disciples feet, watered down, wishy-washy, withstand the fire
Mark 9:35. And he sat down and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all.
And then it was Saturday and the ole fella was late getting up. Late nights have a habit of doing that to you! (smile) And it’s not like I did not get up before, but I felt I wasn’t rested enough to take on the big task of writing the Bit, so I went back to bed to get better rested. And that’s why the Bit is late. However, I know that all of you will understand my sticky situation there, having also found yourselves in similar positions at some or other! (smile)
But to tell yuh how things change, and how after one time is really two, I did not even realize that this was the long Labour Day weekend until sometime late yesterday. In times past, oh boy, I would have already been in the Big Apple (New York City), or on my way there to attend their Labour Day Carnival Parade.
But just like the Caribana here has changed, in my opinion, become watered down, so has the New York Labour Day Parade become watered down, also with too much police control now. Steups! As soon as six o’clock comes, they rushing you off the Parkway. And when you add the setta walking …Brother!
The last time I checked it out, believe it was 2007, mih Aunty Anne and I had to park a mile from the parade and walk like everlasting to reach it! We both said no way again Jose! I haven’t been back since then. Even mih Uncle John and them pan side stop coming out because it just wasn’t the same, didn’t have the same flavour.
So I wish that all who go nowadays have a good time, but me ent going nowhere! Like I do with Caribana, I will just remember the good memories I have of those events, and like memories do, they won’t ever leave me! (smile) So let’s turn to the more important matters at hand now nuh; the quotes we friend Anselm sent us this past week.
Hear this first one nuh: ‘Our way of thinking creates good or bad outcomes.’ And that’s for certain sure friends, because it all starts in our minds! Our mind is the battlefield of our souls and bodies. That’s where all the fighting for power goes on between the evil one and the Holy Spirit! For as Cousin Sol informs us: ‘as a man thinks in his heart, so is he.’ (Prov.23:7a).
Yes my people, whatever we think or focus most on, that’s what we become. That’s why believers need to focus on good things, the things of God, if we want to live successful earthly lives.
And the next quote says: ‘Happiness comes from within. It is not dependent on external things or on other people. You become vulnerable and can be easily hurt when your feelings of security and happiness depend on the behavior and actions of other people. Never give your power to anyone else.’
The problem with that statement is the word ‘happiness,’ because that does come from external circumstances. Now if yuh talking about joy, then that’s a different story, because true joy can only come from within, and it’s there regardless of our difficult outward circumstances.
That’ why Satan tries his very best to steal our joy, because he knows that when he does that we simply become down and out. That’s because ‘the joy of the Lord is our strength!’ (Neh.8:10) And also why you can’t afford to allow others to control your situations, since they will invariably steal your joy.
Now listen to this: ‘If you don’t behave as you believe, you will end by believing as you behave.’ So true friends, so true! The corresponding saying is that if you stand for nothing, you will fall for anything and everything! And that’s certainly not a good way to live this hallowed life. So, especially as believers in Christ Jesus, we need to have strong, godly beliefs and stand strong in them, otherwise we’d just be wishy-washy, like so much of the world is today.
And then there’s this: ‘It does not matter how long you are spending on the earth, how much money you have gathered or how much attention you have received. It is the amount of positive vibration you have radiated in life that matters.’ And we all know that to be gospel truth my people! As Jesus said, ‘Ye shall know them by their fruits.’ (Matt.7:16a)
And furthermore, come the judgement, all our works will be tried by fire, and we’ll only be rewarded for the ones that withstand the fire. (1 Cor.3:13-15) So we desperately need to build on the only true foundation, which is our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ!
And the last quote wisely asks? ‘How might you serve someone today? How could you take the time to say “thank you” to someone who has graciously loved and served you?’ Ah friends, those are all questions that we should seriously ponder this Saturday morning, because our destinies depend on them. Remember our mighty and majestic Lord Jesus Christ came down from heaven and became a lowly servant, not the Crown Prince He was entitled to be.
Remember what He said to the disciples when they were arguing amongst themselves who should be the greatest among them? ‘And he sat down and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all.’ Oh my people, in Christ’s kingdom, being the greatest oftimes means being the least. And Christ’s desire for us down here is to serve and help those who need help and service.
Remember too the great example Christ gave us when He washed the disciples feet, did possibly the lowliest and most hated job in those times of dusty streets and dirty feet. And then His memorable words to them: ‘For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you.’ (John 13:15)
Oh friends, that is certainly one area in which the overall body of Christ, His church, and we the people of that church are extremely weak! We don’t serve each other, or the numerous lost and hurting as much as we ought to, because we still have too much pride, and still believe like the world does, that the one who is being served is better than the one that’s serving.
However, that’s contrary to Jesus’ principles. So please let’s check our service meters today nuh, and see how we rank in that area, and take it to the Lord in prayer, because we can ALL do better than we’re currently doing, and that’s a big reason why Christ’s church is not growing and is not as powerful as it ought to be. Much LOVE!
…Jesus came to save the lost…to help the lowly and downtrodden…and that’s what He expects of His church…
27 Apr 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a better tomorrow, a ladder, a lifeboat, Anselm's quotes, aspire to inspire, be a lamp, be of good cheer, courage, crucifixion, do what is right, don't depend on others, don't worry about what you can't control, eternal life, excessive rain, flooding, for your own happiness, gives his life for the sheep, glorify your Father, God sent not His Son, help heal someone's soul, horrific torture, howling wind, i have overcome the world, in heaven, in me, into the world, Jesus, Jesus' amazing love, Jesus' friendship, let your light so shine, light of the world, like a rocking chair, live a righteous life, man's selfish nature, might be saved, not what is easy, put our best foot forward, reassurance, sacrifice, salt of the earth, salvation, see your good works, shining example, take advantage of our situations, take responsibility, the good shepherd, the right thing, the world through him, to condemn the world, to make you happy, tribulation, Tuesday Mantra, wasted energy, what is popular, with God's help, won the victory, worry, ye might have peace
John 3:17. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
Ah friends, thankfully my area did not get as much rain as expected yesterday, but we did get a lot of wind! Chuh! The wind howled most of the afternoon straight through the night, and at 7.30 this cloudy Saturday morning it is still carrying on out there. At one stage I wanted to go out the street and run some errands, but after hearing the wind on a particularly loud pass with stuff rattling all around, I decided to leave them for another day. (smile)
Let’s hope that no serious damage was done to any properties around here. Unfortunately though, several places around the country have been flooded due to excessive rain. The least we can do is pray for them, but if we can also help in any other way, please let’s do so.
Ah mih people, when it’s not one thing, it’s another yes! But that’s life, and fortunately, as true believers in Jesus Christ we have the wherewithal to withstand all the stuff that comes against us in this crazy world. Give Him some much deserved thanks and praise my brethren!
And since it’s Saturday, let’s have a look at the quotes that our friend Anselm sent us this past week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And this first one is awesome truth: ‘Take responsibility for your own happiness, never put it in other people’s hands.’
Oh friends, that’s one of the first things we ought to learn in this life: we are responsible for our own happiness! We can’t depend on others to make us happy, because too often they will take advantage of our situations and instead cause us unhappiness. It’s just a part of man’s selfish nature!
And then there’s this: ‘Instead of worrying about what you cannot control, shift your energy to what you can create.’ More awesome truth my people! Why worry about something you have no control over eh? Remember our Tuesday Mantra, where we don’t hurry or worry, just go about our business basking in Jesus’ awesome friendship and sharing His amazing LOVE with the world?
Worrying just brings wasted energy. As Sister Joyce (Joyce Meyer) likes to say, ‘Worry is like a rocking chair, you can do it all day, but it will get you nowhere.’ Instead, we need to use that energy we waste in worry on stuff that’s productive and moves our lives along.
Now hear this: ‘Do what is right, not what is easy nor what is popular.’ That’s nothing new, because we’ve been taught that all our lives. However, the problem is that the right thing is usually not easy or popular! It’s often very difficult and very unpopular, especially if you’re trying to live a righteous life with Jesus as your bright and shining example.
But please note, Jesus didn’t do what was easy or popular. He went against the religious hypocrites of His day, and suffered horrific torture and crucifixion for His beliefs and earthly agenda. Now most of us won’t have to make such a critical and crucial sacrifice, but we will be required to make lesser ones, all in His name, because that’s what He was and is all about; sacrificing for others!
And He gave us that awesome reassuring scripture to hold on to when things get difficult. ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33)
What a mighty and magnificent scripture that is my brethren! It gives us something to hold on to, to take courage from, knowing that Christ has already won the victory over the evil world, and we just have to hang in there and put our best foot forward.
And all of that just segues nicely into the last quote: ‘Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder. Help someone’s soul heal. Walk out of your house like a shepherd.’ Glory to God my people! That’s what Jesus is asking of every believer: help somebody! That’s why He came to earth, to help us! As He said so plainly: ‘For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.’
Mama Mia! Therefore, if we want to be true believers and followers of His, our earthly days should also be spent helping others, like He helped us. Remember, the Father doesn’t want to lose even one of His most precious creation to the enemy, that’s why Jesus called us out to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world. (Matt.5:13-14)
Salt adds flavour to stuff and also helps it last, while light shines through the darkness and shows the way. That’s what Jesus did for us: He came to earth as the LIGHT of the world, shining His awesome light into this dark and evil world and illuminating it, showing those who believe in Him a straight and narrow path to walk safely along, leading to salvation and eternal life!
And right now, because He can’t be several places at once, He’s imbued us with His Holy Spirit to lead and guide us, so that we can truly become His hands, ears, eyes and feet down here on earth, and take responsibility for showing others the way out of their darkness into His brilliant and life-saving light. And to do that effectively, we need to do as he asked: ‘Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.’ (Matt.5:16)
Oh my faithful saints in Christ, it’s obvious that we’re not doing such a good job on that request, otherwise our world wouldn’t be in such a topsy-turvy, evil, ungodly, strife-filled mess. So please, let’s pledge today to do better nuh, for Christ is depending on us. And if we get real serious about it, with God’s help, we can certainly make our world a better place to live, both for our descendants and ourselves. Much LOVE!
…I am the good shepherd…the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep… (John 10:11)
P.S. Let me apologize for the confusing dates on yesterday’s Bit. The first one said the 26th, which was right, but the second said the 27th. Friends, the ole fella is only human, so as Jesus taught us, please forgive him. (smile) Much LOVE!
Visit the Scrip-Bit Blog at https://randyopbrien50.com
20 Apr 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a second time, almighty god, Anselm's quotes, any change, be born again, believe christ died for us, blood sweat and tears, born of flesh, born of Spirit, born of water, builds the bridge to success, complete annihilation, discomforts, do it, drawbacks, drive us to action, drive you, driving force, Easter Sunday, emotional time, eternal spiritual life, evil world, except a man, Good Friday, he cannot see, help, holy spirit, human, I say unto thee, infallible, innate power, intent paired with action, intimate relationship, knowledge, live change, live it, mistakes, Mother's womb, new beginning, New Birth, Nicodemus, of the spirit, passion, patience, persevarance, perseverance, power in our words, problems, rain rain go away, rose triumphantly from the dead, sons of abraham, speak change, spiritual rebirth, strong purpose in life, success, success is something you do, the kingdom of God, to shape your life, verily verily, wisdom
John 3:3. Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again (or from above), he cannot see the kingdom of God.
Rain, rain go away, come again some other day! Chuh! I like rain, but after experiencing it for my last three days in Tobago then coming back home to it, it’s become a tad much. And the warnings of extensive flooding don’t help. But how to keep us happy eh?
When we have a lot of sunshine, and it’s hot, we complain. A lot of cold and snow also cause bitter mutterings. And we don’t like it much when it rains on our parade either. (smile) And when you’re sick and feeling lousy, like I am, that state of affairs doesn’t help matters either. So I guess there’s just no pleasing us and we just have to learn to live with whatever Mother Nature supplies. End of story! (smile)
And since it’s Saturday, let’s see what quotes our friend Anselm sent us this week as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. But first let me apologize for a typo in yesterday’s Bit. I talked about Peter cutting off the high priest’s ear; it was actually the servant of the high priest’s ear he cut off.
I knew that very well and it was what I intended to write, but somehow or the other didn’t write that. And you can imagine my disgust when a friend wrote and pointed it out to me because I don’t like to make mistakes in the Bit. But I guess that only shows I’m human and thus not infallible. (smile)
And the first quote says: ‘If you have a strong purpose in life, you don’t have to be pushed. Your passion will drive you there.’ I guess there is much truth to that statement as passion is usually a driving force in our lives.
However, passion alone will not bring us to our destiny, we need other things like wisdom, knowledge, help and perseverance. In other words, blood, sweat and tears must be combined with our passion to provide success! (smile)
And that segues in nicely to this other quote: ‘You’ve been given the innate power to shape your life…but you cannot just speak change, you have to LIVE change. Intent paired with action builds the bridge to success. You can’t just want it; you have to do it, live it…BE it! Success isn’t something you have; it’s something you DO!’
Ah friends, we see there it’s all about the doing, the living, the action! We just can’t sit on our fannies and expect things to change or our lives to be good because we wish it or talk about it. Yes, there is power in our words, but that power needs to drive us to action, to actually doing something to bring about the changes we desire!
But then we come to this quote that appears to throw a spanner in our wheel: ‘Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts.’ So true, so true my people! Whatever we try to do, be it good, bad, or indifferent, things rarely run as smoothly as they should, or as we expect them to.
But that’s just life! Life that seems to take pleasure in mucking up our best efforts! But that’s where things like patience, perseverance, ‘stick-to-it tiveness,’ and don’t give up come in! And as true believers in Christ, we all know that giving up is not in our vocabulary.
Remember Jesus said that we’d have problems in this evil and ungodly world, but we can handle them with grace and a smile, because He’s already overcome the world. (John 16:33)
Now here is the last quote: ‘We all have two lives. The second one starts when we realize we only have one.’ And isn’t that the awesome truth my fellow believers? We have one life when we’re born of our mother’s womb, and then a second when we’re born of the Holy Spirit which brings us into serious communication and an intimate relationship with Almighty God!
Jesus said it quite plainly to the Pharisee Nicodemus who came by night to enquire about Jesus’ awesome power and works. ‘Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again (or from above), he cannot see the kingdom of God.’
Yes friends, to be included in the heavenly realm we all need to be born again of the Spirit as Jesus also told Nicodemus, when, in his confusion, he asked about entering his mother’s womb a second time.
‘Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.’ (John 3:5-7)
And the scholars provide this interesting explanation: ‘3:3. Verily, verily (lit. “amen, amen”) occurs only in John’s gospel, and then always for emphasis. Born again may be translated either “again” or “from above.”
Perhaps both ideas should be combined here, to indicate the repetition of an act from another source. John might have said “again” had he wished to indicate repetition of an act from the same source. Only John uses this expression in the gospels.
This concept of the New Birth includes these implications: (1) It undercuts Jewish dependence on being sons of Abraham (cf. 8:39). (2) It reveals that there must be a work of God “from above” since the Jews considered children (new births) to be God’s blessing. (3) It teaches the necessity of a new beginning.’
Yes my brethren, to be able to enter God’s kingdom a spiritual rebirth is absolutely necessary. But it’s also very simple. All we have to do is to believe that Christ died for us on Good Friday, as we commemorated yesterday. And then that He rose triumphantly from the dead and the grave, as we will celebrate tomorrow on Easter Sunday!
Oh my people, there’s no better time to give our lives to Christ than RIGHT NOW! So let’s BE BORN AGAIN nuh, at this most exciting and emotional time of Easter, as we celebrate Christ’s total victory, His complete annihilation of the evil enemy Satan, ruler of hell, death and the grave! All Heaven will rejoice if we do! Much LOVE!
…eternal spiritual life…calls for spiritual rebirth today…
07 Apr 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a better tomorrow, actions, Anselm's quotes, around the house, before men, born again, bounden duty, Christian way of life, christianity, communicate, couch potato, get serious, get with the programme, give light to others, gives light, glorify your father in heaven, glory to God, glow yourself, God rested, good for nothing, happiness, help, hindrance, knocking down the door, laze around, lead weary travellers, let your light so shine, lift our spirits, light a candle, light of the world, lighthouses, look for rainbows, look for stars, Lord and Saviour, natural beauty, naysayers, one fell swoop, oodles of things, pull up our socks, ready made, reaping the rewards, receive Jesus, reflecting, renew the saltiness, replenish the soul, salt of the earth, see your good works, sentinels, share, surround yourself, the extra mile, the help of God, the kingdom of heaven, the light and love of Jesus, the light that's Jesus, through thick and thin, traitors, trod under foot, turning away, under a bushel, willing to go
Matthew 5:16. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
Well a good morning to all my couch potato Scrip-Bit friends! (smile) Oh I know many of us cannot afford that luxury because there are oodles of things to be done around the house; stuff that we couldn’t or can’t do during the workweek.
But please find some time to just laze around and do absolutely nothing but laze around, it does help to replenish the soul. We cannot be busy every second of every day. For even God rested after every day when He was creating the world. He could have done it all in one fell swoop, but He chose to take His time and do it right, and so should we.
And since it’s Saturday, we ought also to consider some of the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And here is the first one: ‘When it rains, look for rainbows. When it’s dark, look for stars.’
I guess that makes sense since oftimes rainbows and stars are used by God to communicate with us, and even if there is no serious communication involved, they still lift our spirits by their natural beauty.
And then there is: ‘Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions.’ And that’s basically true, because regardless of how good or bad your situation or circumstances are, ONLY you can make yourself happy. If you don’t want to be happy, no one can do so, and likewise, if you truly want to be happy, no one or nothing can stop you.
Now hear this next quote: ‘Surround yourself with people who get you.’ And I take it that he means people who understand you and what you plan to do. Yes friends, it’s of the utmost importance that we surround ourselves with people who think like us and are willing to go the extra mile to help us get where we want to be.
We can’t afford traitors or naysayers, else our projects won’t flourish. And please, don’t forget when you are reaping the rewards to share them with those who’ve stood by you through thick and thin. A lot of us tend to take all the glory for ourselves and forget those who helped us get to the top.
And the last quote says: ‘If you want to give light to others, you have to glow yourself.’ And that’s gospel truth my brethren! You can’t give away something that you don’t have. So if you want to show someone the way, you must have a light yourself to lead them, otherwise it will be just the blind leading the blind.
That brings us to our Bit; the awesome proclamation of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ: ‘Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.’
Oh glory to God my people! That is what we were created to do; glorify God, and we can only do that by being true to our Christian way of life. And Jesus based that on two basic tenets, namely: being the salt of the earth and the light of the world. And what does He mean by that?
Well, salt is possibly the most useful item in all of our society. It gives food flavour, acts as a preservative, melts coldness and heals wounds. Thus it is a good description of a Christian’s relationship to the world around him. And when you are born again, receive Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, all those elements are expected to play a major part in your life.
However as Jesus says earlier on: ‘Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour (flavour), wherewith shall it be salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.’ (Matt.5:13)
Yeh friends, if we are supposedly born again and are not behaving like salt, then we are of no use to the kingdom of heaven; more of a hindrance than a help. And sadly, that’s how a lot of us believers are looking and living today; salt less. That’s why so many others are turning away from Christianity. Our brand of Christianity has lost its flavour and purpose.
The same goes for being the light of the world. Jesus proudly declared of His believers and followers: ‘Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle (lamp), and put it under a bushel (basket, but on a candlestick (lampstand); and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.’ (Matt.5:7)
Ah my fellow believers, sadly, today our faith seems to have lost it’s light, or we are hiding it under a bushel, because too many people are holding, viewing Christianity in a rather hypocritical manner. Our lives are not reflecting the light and LOVE of Jesus as they should. Our heavenly Father is certainly not being glorified the way He ought to be.
And it’s all our fault. God has given us all the tools to do the job, but we, for whatever reason, simply aren’t doing it properly. There’s no rush of people flocking to Jesus, while many are walking away. We’ve got to stop that out flow and begin having the unbelievers knocking down the door of Jesus to get in close to Him, just dying to have what we have.
And that can only be done if we believers pull up our socks, get serious about our faith, renew the saltiness of our spirits and remove the basket that’s hiding our wonderful light, the light of Jesus from the world. And with the help of Almighty God, we can certainly do it.
So today, I’m imploring us to get with the programme, and get on the good foot, so that we can do our bounden duty; glorify our great God. Much LOVE!
…true believers ought to be like lighthouses…standing sentinel in the dark…to lead weary travellers to the light that’s Jesus…
09 Dec 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a life of lasting significance, adore, Anselm's quotes, be long hidden, bread, bread of life, came down from heaven, caring, celebrate Jesus, cherish life, Christmas time, controversy, dreams, earthly sojourn, eat of this bread, eternal life, everlasting life, evil cohorts, flesh, gHis only begotten Son, gift, glory to God, God so loved the world, he that believes on me, high priest, I say unto you, in the wilderness, know the truth, life is a gift, light of the Son, live for ever, live forever, Lord, loving, Lucifer, manna, moon, negative people, not big enough, outer darkness, peaceful, perish, praise and thanks, Redeemer, redemption, respond to, sacrifice, saviour, scare you, shines brilliantly, sun, take for granted, the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob, the life of the world, the living bread, the truth will set you free, truth, tumultuous times, verily verily, wherever Jesus' name is called
John 6:47. Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me hath everlasting life.
Ah friends, unlike yesterday, my area is somewhat dark and cloudy today… But yuh know what? The awesome light of the Son is shining just as brilliantly as it always does! Up and down this old world, wherever His name is called, His light shines brightly at all times!
Glory to God! Give Him exceedingly much thanks and praise for LOVING us so much that He gave His most wonderful Son, Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour, our Redeemer and High Priest!
And what better time is there to adore and celebrate Jesus than at Christmas, the time He came to earth in human form, as a beautiful baby boy, to begin the awesome process of redemption! Mama Mia!
What a great and wonderful God we serve and worship my people! How could we ever think of throwing Him aside eh, of worshipping anyone else, when there’s NO other Deity who’s truly alive, and as great and wonderful, as LOVING and caring of mankind as Him?
Give Him innumerable praise and thanks my brethren, exalt His Holy Name, for He is the ONE, TRUE and LIVING GOD; the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Creator and Controller of the universe and all therein!
And now that we’ve praised and raised up our wonderful God, this Saturday morning, let’s turn to some quotes from our friend Anselm, who sincerely aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And this week he’s picked some simple, basic but very powerful and truthful quotes.
Hear this first one: ‘The less you respond to negative people, the more peaceful your life will become.’ And that’s no lie! The less you have negative people in your life, the less controversy there’ll be. Listen to this: ‘Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.’
What an awesome truth my people! The sun, moon and the truth can only be hidden for so long until they burst forth in splendour and reality. It’s only a matter of time friends. As Jesus said, ‘And you shall know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’ (John 8:32)
And this one is interesting: ‘If your dreams don’t scare you, they are not big enough.’ True! What’s the point of having dreams if we know we can easily meet them. But we have to be careful not to make our dreams too big, that they indeed scare us from trying to implement them. There’s got to be some circumspection in those dreams.
And I’ve saved the best for last: ‘Life is a gift. Never take it for granted.’ How very true that is my brethren! Our lives can be put out at such short notice, even in the midst of our youth, that we ought never to take it lightly. We see it so often, especially in these tumultuous times, one moment we’re here, then the next, we’re not.
So we have to cherish this earthly life and use it wisely. But then too friends, we also have to be cognizant of the life after this earthly sojourn; eternal life, whether we’ll live forever, or be thrown into outer darkness with Lucifer and his evil cohorts. And therein lies the big question, how do we achieve or acquire eternal life?
And the question is answered simply, but truthfully in our Bit, in the words of Jesus. ‘Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me hath everlasting life.’
It’s oh so simple people! So simple that some of us think it’s too simple to be true. But believe me, it is true! If you’ll read Jesus words in the Good Book, they are usually very simple and straightforward, except perhaps His parables. And He’s made this most important aspect of life as easy as possible so that ALL can obtain it, regardless of level of understanding or education.
And we all know the great reason behind it all, found in the corollary to our Bit. ‘For God so LOVED the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.’ (John 3:16) Yes friends, that’s the long version. (smile)
Now let’s go back to after our Bit, where Jesus gives a more detailed explanation. ‘I am that bread of life. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.’ (John 6:48-51)
Obviously His listeners back then didn’t understand Him. ‘The Jews therefore strove (quarreled) among themselves, saying how can this man give us his flesh to eat?’ (John 6:52)
But all Jesus was really saying was that instead of them having to make continual animal sacrifices for their sins, He would pay for their sins and all the sins forevermore with the sacrifice of His flesh. And that He certainly did my people!
So please, let’s take life a little more seriously than we seem to do these days nuh, especially our eternal life, for what we do on that front now, will mean EVERYTHING in the long run. Much LOVE!
…who gave His life…so that we could have life…life eternal and everlasting…JESUS…Glory to God…
25 Nov 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a better tomorrow, a no-brainer, a step forward, abundance, actions, Advocate, an attitude of gratitude, animal instincts, Anselm's quotes, arrogance, better than life, brother, by our hands, Christian hearts, come to pass, Creator, efforts, energizes our Spirits, excellent, faithfulness, fatness, favourable things, full of ourselves, give thanks, goals, harp, hindrance, in advance, in your mind's eye, Israelites, jehovah god, Jesus Christ, Joshua, light, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, loving-kindness, lute, made me glad, make a habit, many hats, marrow, me and my house, meditate, mental, mighty man, my lips shall praise thee, night watches, optimism, positive expectations, precious, pride, provider, put their trust, Redeemer, satisfied, sing praise, thanksgiving, the best, the children of men, the Lord's goodness, the work of thy hands, toward achieving, triumph, under the shadow of thy wings, ungrateful, unworthy, we will serve the Lord, winners, wisdom, without God's help
Psalm 36:7. How excellent (precious) is thy LOVING-kindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings.
And yes, it’s cloudy, it might even rain, but you know that doesn’t detract in the least from the light and LOVE in our Christian hearts deposited there by our Leader, our Friend, our Brother, our Lord and Saviour, our Advocate, our Redeemer, Jesus Christ!
Oh what a mighty man is our Jesus! He just had to be with the many hats He wears in our lives. So how could we do anything but LOVE Him eh? It would be most unworthy and ungrateful of us, especially in this Thanksgiving time.
That brings us to our Saturday feature, Anselm’s Quotes; quotes from a brother who sincerely aspires to lead us to a better tomorrow. And the first one addresses what we were just talking about. ‘Develop an attitude of gratitude, and give thanks for everything that happens to you, knowing that every step forward is a step toward achieving something bigger and better than your current situation.’
Oh friends, there’s no better way of living this life than with an attitude of gratitude and thanksgiving, for that’s the way God expects us to live. And doing so, just energizes our Spirits and allows more favourable things to keep happening.
The second quote declares that ‘Winners make a habit of manufacturing their own positive expectations in advance of the event.’ And if you truly expect to win, then you had better have the optimism and winning picture in your mind’s eye, otherwise the winning might not come to pass.
That’s because a large part of winning is mental, of seeing yourself in the winners’ circle. And what’s the point of doing something if you don’t expect to be successful at it eh? None whatsoever!
And this last quote says it all. ‘If what you are doing is not moving you towards your goals, then it’s moving you away from your goals.’ Simple logic friends. (smile) Your actions and efforts can only carry you one way, hopefully in the direction you desire.
But yuh know people, the wisest and best way to achieve any kind of success in this life is by following the gospel truth words of Bruh David in our Bit. ‘How excellent (precious) is thy LOVING-kindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings.’
And why wouldn’t we do that if God is our Creator and Provider eh? Because we’re too full of ourselves, possess too much pride and arrogance, foolishly believing that our success has been wrought solely by our hands. Hogwash! Heifer dust! NOTHING is ever done without God’s help or hindrance!
And the psalmist truthfully declares it in his opening remarks of Psalm 92 – Praises for the Lord’s goodness. ‘It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto thy name, O Most High: To show forth (declare) thy LOVING-kindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night,
Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery (lute or lyre), upon the harp with a solemn (harmonious or melodic) sound. For thou, Lord, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in the work of thy hands.’ (Ps.92:1-4)
Yeh friends, it’s ONLY through the work of God’s hands in the background that mankind can ever be successful! Please, let’s remember that and give Him the kind of praise and thanksgiving, glory and gratitude that He deserves nuh. For if He doesn’t get the exaltation He believes He deserves, He is just liable to leave us to do it all on our own, and the wise ones know that we can’t do much of anything on our own.
And Bruh David knew that, that’s why when he was suffering in the wilderness, running from Saul and his many enemies, he could write in Psalm 63 – God satisfies the thirsting soul. ‘Because thy LOVING-kindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee. Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.
My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow (the best) and fatness (abundance); and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips: When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches. Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.’ (Ps.63: 3-7)
Ah mih people, if a man on the run from murderous enemies in a dry and thirsty land can sing the praises of our God so loudly and marvelously, then there must be lots of truth to his words, since his situation is definitely not a joyful or pleasant one.
So what’s it to be eh friends? Shall we follow the Lord, or shall we follow our own animal instincts? It’s an individual choice we all have to make, and make soon too, because once Christ returns, it will be too late.
But yuh know what, as Joshua said so long ago, when he put the same question to the Israelites; ‘but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.’ (Josh.24:15d)
Yes friends, I have yet to see any good reason to do otherwise. Hope you feel the same way too, for that is wisdom of eternal proportions! Much LOVE!
…to sincerely follow Jehovah God…should be a no-brainer…if one believes His holy word…
18 Nov 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a musical storm, a tree of life, accepting responsibility, accomplish any goal, Anselm's quotes, asaph, Atlas, blessings, comfort zone, David Rudder, depressed, diehard fans, discipline, feel good, feel terrific, forum, gone astray, gospel truth, gratification, greedy times, Hammerson Theatre, hang your hat, hope deferred, jam session, Jesus Christ, kaiso, Let there be light, Lord and Saviour, lost, LOVE, makes the heart sick, mash up the place, name of the game, natural outgrowth, negative things, on top of the world, power in words, prerequisite, raise your children, refreshes, revitalizes, rewards, sincerity, singing praises, soca, social commentary, success, tear it down, the happiest people, the power of hope, truth, try something new, West Indian atmosphere, when desire comes, while there is life there is hope, zest for life
Proverbs 13:12. Hope deferred maketh the heart sick, but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life.
Oh friends, welcome to a wet Saturday morning! But I can assure you that last evening it was a hot, tropical time in the Hammerson Theatre of the Living arts Centre in Mississauga, as Bruh David and Friends, a tight, great sounding band, mash up the place! They tear it down with a musical storm of pure ‘Madness,’ of soca and kaiso!
Brother! I can just imagine that’s how it was when the old time Bruh David and his buddies, Asaph, etc. got together and put on a jam session; the music would be ringing out and the people would be singing loud, harmonious praises! Well that’s how David Rudder had the some five hundred of us singing out in the theatre last night.
Now I’ve always liked some of David’s songs, but last night he made me a believer, with the way he arranged the songs and presented them. And you can imagine the cacophony in the place when he buss tunes like ‘Bahia Girl, the Hammer, Trini to the Bone, Madness, etc. etc. I can’t remember them all. And the house was certainly hopping when he ended with ‘Give Praise!’
I don’t know if Hammerson Hall has ever experienced that sort of vibrant West Indian atmosphere, as David and the Band performed for 2 hours straight; something that you don’t see often. And the craving for an encore was so great that he had to come back out and sing for a few more minutes.
Then he stayed after the show, meeting and greeting his many fans, I should say diehard fans in the lobby. I remember mentioning to one fellow down there, that I was never a big David fan, and brother, if yuh see how quickly his wife turned around and looked at me as though I was crazy! (smile)
The difference between David and the other West Indian artists around the place nowadays is that they only singing about girls, wining and drinking, but he is still focused on the way the song style began, as a forum for social commentary and change. Keep it up, mih brother!
Now, since it’s Saturday, we have to turn to that other brother, Anselm, who aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow with his quotes. And he’s got some excellent ones this week. Listen to this first one: ‘The happiest people in the world are those who feel absolutely terrific about themselves, and this is the natural outgrowth of accepting total responsibility for every part of their life.’
No lie, mih people! You can’t truly feel good, until you feel good about yourself, because yourself goes with you everywhere, (smile) and accepting responsibility for our lives is a major key to our success.
And success comes when you ‘Move out of your comfort zone. You can only grow if you are willing to feel awkward and uncomfortable when you try something new.’ Ah, the age old story friends. You’ve got to hang your hat a li’l higher than you can reach it. When you feel too comfortable, you never reach for the better fruit that’s a li’l further out on the limb. And that’s when you grow.
And this next quote is gospel truth: ‘Never say anything about yourself you do not want to come true.’ That’s because there is power in the word of God, and in our words. Remember, God spoke the world and all therein in to existence. He didn’t wave a magic wand, but uttered a simple; ‘Let there be light…And there was light…’ That means we should not speak negative things about ourselves, because intuitively and subconsciously our actions and behaviour leads us to them.
Now here is something that explains our problem with the world system. ‘The ability to discipline yourself to delay gratification in the short term in order to enjoy greater rewards in the long term, is the indispensable prerequisite for success.’
Ah mih people, in these turbulent and greedy times, instant gratification is the name of the game; we want everything now for now, even though waiting might bring greater rewards. But please remember there’s always a price to pay for impatience.
And this last quote is priceless. ‘If you raise your children to feel that they can accomplish any goal or task they decide upon, you will have succeeded as a parent and you will have given your children the greatest of all blessings.’ Ah friends, so many of us parents have failed to do that, that’s why this generation seems so lost and gone astray. But we can’t give up on them now, we have to keep on trying. Remember while there is life, there is always hope!
That’s why we can say in all truth and sincerity like Cousin Sol in our Bit: ‘Hope deferred maketh the heart sick, but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life.’ And is that ever so true! When we lose hope we get depressed and miserable and lose the zest for life.
However, when we regain it… oh boy, it just revitalizes and refreshes us. We feel on top of the world; like we can move the whole world; be like Atlas and bear it on our bony human shoulders. That’s the power of hope my brethren!
So please, let’s never lose hope; especially in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, for He is the GREATEST hope there is…and the ONLY One we need in this topsy-turvy world. Much LOVE!
…to hope…to hope…and yet to hope…in Christ…forever and ever…
21 Oct 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a bodybuilder, a limited life, a lot of times, abundant, an easy row to hoe, Anselm's quotes, at bay, be obedient, believers in Jesus, communicate through prayer, connect the dots, consistent with intentions, deeds, destiny, earthly battles, faith walk, foundation of wisdom, full, getting enough sleep, glory to God, God's help, God's will, God's Word, gut it out, heaven-looking, human nature, hypocrites, hypocritical element, I allow not, I can do all things through Christ, I don't do, I don't understand, integrity, Jesus' philosophy, karma, keep our wits, life, looking forward, lure of sin, natural sinful nature, oncoming enemy, people don't know what they want, praising God, productive life, put your trust in Jesus, read His word, seminal verse, sinful, slept in, spiritual, spiritual armour, spirituality, stick close to Jesus, that which I do, things of the world, trust, two edged sword, two natures, unbelievers, unholy struggle, vapid pleasures, what I hate, what I want to do, wisdom, words, worldly nature, write it indelibly, wrong things, your gut
Romans 7:15. For that which I do, I allow not (I don’t understand): for what I would do (want to do), that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.
Ah friends, it seems like I’m one of those who slept in this October Saturday morn! But mine was not by choice though, I just had no idea of the time. And I went to bed fairly early at that too. I’m trying to go to bed at a decent hour these days… Aren’t you proud of me? (smile)
That’s because I believe one of my problems is simply not getting enough sleep. The only problem though is when I lie in bed too long, roughly over four hours, my ole back aches like mad when I do get up. But I guess we have to suffer something to gain something better.
Anyway, I’m up now, and it’s Saturday, so let’s check out some of our friend Anselm’s quotes for this week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. Hear this first one: ‘A lot of times, people don’t know what they want until you show it to them.’
Now that might be true sometimes, but we have to be very careful of what others think we might want, because it just might not jive with God’s will for us.
That leads us to this one: ‘You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever.’
The first part makes sense, but the last part should definitely read ‘put your trust in the One and Only Jesus Christ!’ And if you do that, you certainly won’t do this next quote. ‘Don’t live a limited life.’
Yeh mih people, as true believers in Jesus, you will NEVER lead a limited life, because Jesus’ basic philosophy is for his followers to lead a full, abundant and productive life. Glory to God!
And here is the last quote. ‘Integrity is when our words and deeds are consistent with our intentions.’ And is that ever so true my brethren!
Unfortunately though, too many of us Christians, in these evil and godless times don’t have much integrity, because our words and deeds are not consistent with our intentions. That’s why so many unbelievers, as well as believers, see us as hypocrites!
That’s the reason a lot of people, even supposed believers, use for not going to church; they don’t want to join a bunch of hypocrites in praising God. But yuh know what friends, all of us have some hypocritical element in us – not liking someone for some foolish reason, etc. etc. – so when we go to church, all we do, is add one more hypocrite to the bunch! (smile)
But most of us won’t see it like that. And yes, it’s very possible to have good intentions and do evil deeds, as Bruh Paul declares in our Bit: ‘For that which I do, I allow not (I don’t understand): for what I would do (want to do), that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.’
Yeh mih brethren, that’s just the unholy struggle between our two natures; our sinful and worldly one, and our spiritual and heaven-looking other. And as you can see, even Bruh Paul, with all his spirituality, got caught in the battle between those two strong attitudes.
So it’s not like we are totally immune to the struggle being waged between our two natures. The lure of sin and its vapid pleasures are surely strong, but like a bodybuilder, we have to build our heavenly looking spirit so that it can stand strong and steadfast against our human nature.
As we saw yesterday, the enemy is always on the lookout to steal our joy and have us feeling guilty and miserable. However, if we do, as the Good Book says, resist the devil and draw near to God, then we’ll usually come out victorious.
Oh friends, we know that turning away from, resisting the things of the world is not easy, certainly not an easy row to hoe, but as with EVERYTHING else in this life, with God’s help, we can overcome.
Please don’t ever forget this seminal, foundational, fruit-bearing, productive verse from Bruh Paul to the Philippians. ‘I can do ALL THINGS through Christ which strengtheneth me.’ ((Phil.4:13)
Yes friends, until we truly believe that and totally incorporate it into our lives, our faith walk will not be as good as it ought to be, and we’ll be doing many more wrong things than we want to do, but not understanding why.
And sadly, there’s no easy way around the struggle of our two natures. To overcome our natural sinful nature, we just have to gut it out, stick close to Jesus; consistently read His Word, constantly communicate with Him in prayer, and do our best to be obedient to His dictates.
That means having on our spiritual armour at all times, and continually swinging the mighty, ever-sharp, two-edged sword of God’s Word in the face of the oncoming enemy to keep him at bay.
Yes friends, to win this battle, we need to keep our wits about us ALL THE TIME, but with God’s help, we can certainly do it. Let’s remember that, and write it indelibly in our hearts, souls and minds, for it’s the foundation of wisdom! Much LOVE!
…ONLY with God’s help…can we win our earthly battles…
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SCRIP-BITS 
Today’s Scrip-Bit 18 November 2017 Proverbs 13:12.
18 Nov 2017 Leave a comment
by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a musical storm, a tree of life, accepting responsibility, accomplish any goal, Anselm's quotes, asaph, Atlas, blessings, comfort zone, David Rudder, depressed, diehard fans, discipline, feel good, feel terrific, forum, gone astray, gospel truth, gratification, greedy times, Hammerson Theatre, hang your hat, hope deferred, jam session, Jesus Christ, kaiso, Let there be light, Lord and Saviour, lost, LOVE, makes the heart sick, mash up the place, name of the game, natural outgrowth, negative things, on top of the world, power in words, prerequisite, raise your children, refreshes, revitalizes, rewards, sincerity, singing praises, soca, social commentary, success, tear it down, the happiest people, the power of hope, truth, try something new, West Indian atmosphere, when desire comes, while there is life there is hope, zest for life
Proverbs 13:12. Hope deferred maketh the heart sick, but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life.
Oh friends, welcome to a wet Saturday morning! But I can assure you that last evening it was a hot, tropical time in the Hammerson Theatre of the Living arts Centre in Mississauga, as Bruh David and Friends, a tight, great sounding band, mash up the place! They tear it down with a musical storm of pure ‘Madness,’ of soca and kaiso!
Brother! I can just imagine that’s how it was when the old time Bruh David and his buddies, Asaph, etc. got together and put on a jam session; the music would be ringing out and the people would be singing loud, harmonious praises! Well that’s how David Rudder had the some five hundred of us singing out in the theatre last night.
Now I’ve always liked some of David’s songs, but last night he made me a believer, with the way he arranged the songs and presented them. And you can imagine the cacophony in the place when he buss tunes like ‘Bahia Girl, the Hammer, Trini to the Bone, Madness, etc. etc. I can’t remember them all. And the house was certainly hopping when he ended with ‘Give Praise!’
I don’t know if Hammerson Hall has ever experienced that sort of vibrant West Indian atmosphere, as David and the Band performed for 2 hours straight; something that you don’t see often. And the craving for an encore was so great that he had to come back out and sing for a few more minutes.
Then he stayed after the show, meeting and greeting his many fans, I should say diehard fans in the lobby. I remember mentioning to one fellow down there, that I was never a big David fan, and brother, if yuh see how quickly his wife turned around and looked at me as though I was crazy! (smile)
The difference between David and the other West Indian artists around the place nowadays is that they only singing about girls, wining and drinking, but he is still focused on the way the song style began, as a forum for social commentary and change. Keep it up, mih brother!
Now, since it’s Saturday, we have to turn to that other brother, Anselm, who aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow with his quotes. And he’s got some excellent ones this week. Listen to this first one: ‘The happiest people in the world are those who feel absolutely terrific about themselves, and this is the natural outgrowth of accepting total responsibility for every part of their life.’
No lie, mih people! You can’t truly feel good, until you feel good about yourself, because yourself goes with you everywhere, (smile) and accepting responsibility for our lives is a major key to our success.
And success comes when you ‘Move out of your comfort zone. You can only grow if you are willing to feel awkward and uncomfortable when you try something new.’ Ah, the age old story friends. You’ve got to hang your hat a li’l higher than you can reach it. When you feel too comfortable, you never reach for the better fruit that’s a li’l further out on the limb. And that’s when you grow.
And this next quote is gospel truth: ‘Never say anything about yourself you do not want to come true.’ That’s because there is power in the word of God, and in our words. Remember, God spoke the world and all therein in to existence. He didn’t wave a magic wand, but uttered a simple; ‘Let there be light…And there was light…’ That means we should not speak negative things about ourselves, because intuitively and subconsciously our actions and behaviour leads us to them.
Now here is something that explains our problem with the world system. ‘The ability to discipline yourself to delay gratification in the short term in order to enjoy greater rewards in the long term, is the indispensable prerequisite for success.’
Ah mih people, in these turbulent and greedy times, instant gratification is the name of the game; we want everything now for now, even though waiting might bring greater rewards. But please remember there’s always a price to pay for impatience.
And this last quote is priceless. ‘If you raise your children to feel that they can accomplish any goal or task they decide upon, you will have succeeded as a parent and you will have given your children the greatest of all blessings.’ Ah friends, so many of us parents have failed to do that, that’s why this generation seems so lost and gone astray. But we can’t give up on them now, we have to keep on trying. Remember while there is life, there is always hope!
That’s why we can say in all truth and sincerity like Cousin Sol in our Bit: ‘Hope deferred maketh the heart sick, but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life.’ And is that ever so true! When we lose hope we get depressed and miserable and lose the zest for life.
However, when we regain it… oh boy, it just revitalizes and refreshes us. We feel on top of the world; like we can move the whole world; be like Atlas and bear it on our bony human shoulders. That’s the power of hope my brethren!
So please, let’s never lose hope; especially in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, for He is the GREATEST hope there is…and the ONLY One we need in this topsy-turvy world. Much LOVE!
…to hope…to hope…and yet to hope…in Christ…forever and ever…