ask the Lord for help

Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 November 2020 Luke 5:32.

24 Nov 2020 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a mighty conqueror, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, around me like a mighty shield, ask the Lord for help, ate and drank with publicans and sinners, awakened when the final trump calls, bounden duty, but sinners to repentance, chores, Christ's awesome interest in our lives, Christ's Church, come unto me, don't have to hurry, dull dour Christian, excited Christians, full of dead men's bones., full of hypocrisy and iniquity, give Christ much thanks and praise, glorious sacrifice of His sinless life, glory and adoration, glory hallelujah, have life more abundantly, help the sick and suffering, helping each other, hypocrites, I am the beloved of god, I came not to call the righteous, I can do all things, I don't have to worry, in god's eyes, late night shenanigans, lend a helping hand, like unto whited sepulchres, make clean the outside of the cup, mamaguying, meek and lowly in heart, not be ashamed to preach Christ, not what I do, not what I have, not what people say about me, on the cross at Calvary, our sins to be forgiven, outwardly appear righteous, reverence that will never end, self-righteous, share His love with the world, sucking lime, take my yoke upon you, the Christian Brotherhood, the great invitation, the Holy Spirit of Christ, the many benefits of knowing Christ, the poor me one, the promise of eternal life, the scribes and Pharisees, they they that are whole need not a physician, through Christ who strengthens me, to be reconciled to Almighty God, to stand justified and righteous before God, too proud to beg, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, With Christ beside me, within they are full of extortion and excess, ye shall find rest unto your souls

Luke 5:32. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

Chores, chores, chores! Oh how I hate it when early morning chores impede my already slow and shaky progress in writing the Bit! (smile) Yeh, waking up, when the body is just getting into full sleep mode is hard enough to contend with after some late night shenanigans. So half asleep, all I want to do is get my strong, sweet java and come down here and ask the Lord for help and guidance to write His Bit.

Chuh man! I don’t need no other foolish, but possibly necessary chores (smile) to intervene there. But who says that life would be easy eh? Nobody. And furthermore, I know I can handle those chores with my eyes closed because I know that I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me! Glory Hallelujah my faithful bredrin!

And with Christ beside me, around me like a mighty shield, and within me, I become a mighty conqueror, so that no one can stand against me and no harm can come to me all the days of my life! Mama Yo! What a wonderful Lord, Saviour, Guide and leader we have! Please precious saints, please give Him much thanks and praise, glory and adoration, with reverence that will never end!

And is the ole fella excited this Tuesday morning or what! But that’s what is supposed to happen to believers in Christ when we truly understand the full power and majesty of His awesome interest in our lives, and the many benefits He’s willing to provide, if we will only do His bidding.

Ah mih people, we can’t be true Christians if we’re not excited by all that’s possible and available to us in and through Christ! A dull, dour Christian is NO Christian at all! For if we’re not excited for our sins to be forgiven, to be reconciled to Almighty God, to stand justified and righteous before Him and be awakened when the final trump (not Donald) calls, so the promise of eternal life with Christ can be fulfilled, then what’s the point in believing eh?

I hate to see the supposed pious, the supposed humble, the poor me one, who thinks that they are being so Christian by downgrading and degrading themselves. Yes, we need to be humble and all that, but not to be ashamed to preach Christ and his gospel. Remember He died that we might have life, and have it more abundantly. What does that mean eh? Dragging and eating dust all the days of our lives?

Certainly not! But to be standing proud and honouring His name and glory; letting ALL and sundry know what He’s done for us in particular, for this sinful world in general, and all the wonderful benefits and promises He has bestowed upon us, especially His momentous and glorious sacrifice of His sinless life for us on the cross at Calvary! And how can you tell people about that, if you’re dragging, ashamed and otherwise not excited eh? How can you offer Jesus’ Great Invitation when you seem like you’re on your last breath and expect people to believe you eh?

Listen to Him open up His very heart and soul to all who are shaking it rough nuh: ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (from) me; for I am meek and lowly (gentle and humble) in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt. 11:28-30) Now how can you invite someone to come to Jesus and enjoy those benefits eh, if you yourself are looking and behaving so rough and weary and laden eh? I certainly wouldn’t want to listen to anyone spout the great benefits available when they don’t look like they have received them!

And that’s partly why the heathen today doesn’t pay much mind to we supposed believers; because we don’t look like and don’t behave like believers are supposed to behave! Too many of us are sour and miserable, cheap and greedy, with generosity a bad word in our vocabulary, and too much like the world around us!

Ah mih people, why you all start me off eh? (smile) But is true. If you look at the normal, ordinary Christian you’d never know that we different from the world, and we have so many good things going for us. Half of us so unpleasant, like we always sucking lime; and the next half either too proud to beg or to lend a helping hand. But that’s what Christianity is all about. And remember when the hypocrite Pharisees asked Christ why he ate and drank with publicans and sinners, He answered: ‘They that are whole (healthy) need not a physician; but they that are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.’ (Luke 5:31-32)

And when Jesus spoke there about the ‘righteous’ He was just mamaguying the Pharisees. He really meant the ‘self-righteous’ like the Pharisees themselves, who thought they were so good and righteous that they needed no repentance. Oh my people, too many of us today also behave like the Pharisees, willing to tell others what to do but not doing anything of the kind ourselves.

Remember how Jesus lambasted the scribes and Pharisees, the religious leaders in Matthew 23? ‘Woe unto you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter (dish), but within they are full of extortion and excess (self-indulgence). Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter (dish), that the outside of them may be clean also.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye are like unto whited sepulchres (white washed tombs), which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity (lawlessness).’ (Matt. 23:25-28)

Now you can imagine how angry and upset Jesus was by the self-righteous, hypocritical behaviour of the supposed religious leaders who were leading the people astray with a whole lot of man-made tradition and not enough true religious doings, if He could spend so much time telling them off. He really got it off His chest that day. Unfortunately though, times have not changed that much for there are still too many of us supposed believers who behave and act like those long gone scribes and Pharisees, hence the Christian brotherhood, Christ’s church is not held in as high an esteem as it deserves.

Friends, our unchristian behaviour is killing Christ’s church. Please, please, I plead with us to wake up and do better. Remember that this pandemic situation and strife filled world is nothing but a wake up call to Christ’s church to get with the true programme; help the sick and the suffering, look out for the poor and homeless, and all those who are badly wounded, thus we can sincerely bring others to Christ, which is our bounden duty as believers. And I do hope what I’ve said makes sense, but even if it doesn’t, I know that with the Holy Spirit of Christ dwelling within you, you are wise enough to pick sense from nonsense. (smile)

Now let’s go home declaring (awright!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the whole world know who and whose we are. In strong voice with sincere hearts: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’

Now let’s go out, or even stay in (smile) and do just that nuh. Much LOVE!

…true Christianity…is all about…helping each other…and spreading the LOVE of Jesus…

P.S. Yes, it long, and somewhat late, but it good…and true too! (smile)

Today’s Scrip-Bit 4 January 2019 Matthew 28:19.

04 Jan 2019 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a wheelchair, ask the Lord for help, baptism, baptizing, believers, body of Christ, Christ's word, Christian knowledge, do better, doctor's appointments, drain me, education, effective service, evangelism, evil, feeling the feelings, Friday chant, fun, generous help, go ye therefore, God's objectives, him who sent me, humility, I am always with you, I have commanded you, identification with Christ, Lord and Saviour, make disciples of, nature of the human animal, New Year's celebration, no man can work, no spring chicken, observe all things, party, party as hearty, relaxation, rest, rough consequences, sincerity, teach all nations, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, the church, the good news, the Great Commission, the Holy Ghost, the name of the Father, the night comes, the SON, the weekend, there is a way, to the end of the world, upheaval, week of work, where there is a will, while it is day, work the works, workingman's song

Matthew 28:19. Go ye therefore, and teach (make disciples of) all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

And then it was the first Friday in the new year; a day every working person was just dying to see, because it was a harbinger of the weekend and they so badly wanted to rest their tired bones, flesh and spirits after all the New Year’s celebrations! Ah mih people, the doctor’s appointments business in the big city have begun again yes. But I’m not sure that I’m keeping this one this morning nuh…

Chuh! The ole fella didn’t sleep well last night and is walking around this morning like an ole fogey. (smile) Easy mih first born easy…(smile) She’s already warned me not to cancel any appointments, but she’s not the one feeling the feelings, nor has to trek umpteen miles in the cold and traffic to hear a doctor say: ‘Oh, everything’s healing well. Just keep on doing what you’re doing!’ And I don’t believe that the duchess is too thrilled having to drive me either. But we’ll see how it shakes out after I’m done with the Bit.

And nobody is more thrilled than the ordinary workingman to see this day as he so enthusiastically informs us: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday oui! I couldn’t work another day even if mih life depended on it! Brother! Them Christmas and New Year’s festivities really drain me yes! Ah guess is time to realize that ah not as young as I used to be…in other words, no spring chicken, so I can’t afford to party as hearty and not feel the resulting rough consequences. Hn, hn! But where there is a will there is a way.

So watch me, come this year Christmas and New Year’s Eve nuh! Ah going to start getting mihself ready from early o’clock…because who want to miss them fantastic celebrations, sitting down like some ole man in a wheelchair and kyar move and go round the place and eat and drink up other people stuff eh? Not me for sure nuh! So thank God for Fridays and weekends yes, that enable me to renew mih soul and body, so that I could get out and party! Party, party, party…!’

Yes mih breddren, it never ceases to amaze me, how we can be so kind and gracious for a couple of weeks, then go right back to the disgusting living we practiced before. But I guess that’s just nature of the human animal. However, since it’s Friday, we need to let our Christian voice be heard in our Friday Chant. It’s not as ebullient and mind chasing as the workingman’s song, but it sure fits our purposes admirably.

So altogether now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen!’

Yeh, it’s not spectacular, but it helps keep us out of the enemy’s reach, and doing Jesus’ work. And that’s the most important aspect of our lives, doing Jesus’ bidding! Remember His last words to the disciples, in what we term, ‘the Great Commission’?

‘Go ye therefore, and teach (make disciples of) all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.’ (Matt. 28:19-20)

There you have it friends, the imperative from our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ! Ours is to spread the good news of His Word around the world, to all and sundry. And note, He assured us, that He would be with us all the time we’re doing His will. What an awesome Saviour we have my brethren! Always thinking of us and our welfare!

And the scholars give us this explanation: ‘28:19. The controlling purpose of the local church is to make disciples of all kinds of people. Those who are evangelized and converted should then be baptized, attesting to their identification with Christ and the local body of believers. The final phase of the Great Commission is to train disciples in Christian knowledge and for effective service. A church cannot choose one aspect of its responsibility and neglect the others.

The Great Commission is a simple command with three steps – evangelism, baptism, and education. Illustration: The Great Commission is the strategy by which the church at Jerusalem saturated its community with the gospel. Application: Every Christian should determine that his ministry for Christ in the church upholds God’s objectives for that institution. (First Ref. Matt.16:18; Primary Ref. Matt.28:19; cf. Phil.1:27).’

Yes friends, our job is to let the heathen know about Christ, and all the wonderful things He has to offer to those who come to Him in humility and sincerity. And each and every Christian has a part to play in this transformation! The question that now faces us, is whether we’re doing what Jesus requires of us, and if we’re doing it to the best of our ability?

And it’s obvious that as the body of Christ, the church, we’re not doing such a great job, otherwise our world wouldn’t be in such a state of upheaval and evil. So I’d like to invite each of us to sit down and seriously ponder our current role in Christ’s church, and then ask the Lord to help us do better, for we can ALL do better. Much LOVE!

…I must work the works of him who sent me…while it is day…the night cometh…when no man can work… (John 9:4)

Today’s Scrip-Bit 3 March 2018 Matthew 15:11.

03 Mar 2018 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: adulteries, anchor us, anger, Anselm, ask the Lord for help, bamboozled, be at peace, beauty comes from the inside out, blasphemies, Christians, comes from the heart, defiles a man, do great things, eat with unwashed hands, evil thoughts, fall for anything, false witness, flooding, for a better tomorrow, fornications, give account for our words, goes into the belly, harvest you reap, hatred, high winds, hypocritcal things, in a great way, in Jesus' name, inspire us, is emptied in the draught, judge each day, light, lose heart, LOVE your neighbour, love yourself, murders, negative emotions, Pharisees, power, pray for them, rain, reap a good harvest, resentment, scribes, sincere efforts, small things, snow, sow good seeds, stands for nothing, stay positive, that which comes out of the mouth, that which goes in the mouth, the blind leading the blind, the seeds you plant, the state of our hearts, thefts, time of distress, violence, winter storm, wonder of wonders

Matthew 15:11. Not that which goeth into the mouth that defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.

Ah Lord eh friends, that winter storm that we talked about yesterday did hit the U.S. North East and Midwest with a vengeance! Rain and snow, high winds and flooding wreaked havoc in several states, including, New York, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania.

Thankfully though, now it has passed on, leaving the unfortunate victims to pull themselves together as best they can, many without light and power. Please, let’s pray for them in their time of distress and do whatever we can to alleviate their situation, for one day we might find ourselves in the same situation, needing the help of others.

And strangely, we got nothing in my area, but the li’l snow that fell overnight, and wonder of wonders, by mid- afternoon, all traces of snow had disappeared. Thank the Lord! Anyway, it’s Saturday, which means turning our attention to some of the quotes that our friend Anselm sent us this week, in his sincere effort to inspire us for a better tomorrow.

And the first quote says: ‘A man who stands for nothing will fall for anything.’ We all know that. We always need something to believe in, something to anchor us, be it good or bad, right or wrong, otherwise we’ll be easily bamboozled by anything. (smile)

The second one wisely advises: ‘Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant.’ And is that ever so true my people! The seeds we plant are always more important than the harvest we reap. That’s because we will only reap what we sow.

As they say, we can’t sow peas and expect to reap corn. Therefore, if you want to reap a good harvest, then it is a necessity to first sow good seeds. Please, let’s all concentrate on sowing good seeds in Jesus name, and leave the harvest to Him.

Now hear this quote: ‘If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way.’ Glory be my fellow believers! Comparatively speaking, very few of us will ever be able to do great things in this world, but ALL of us can do small things in a good and great manner.

Remember, the small things do matter, and when you add up the small things, then you get the big ones. So let’s not lose heart if today we’re not embarked on some project that will become great and also make us great, but sincerely concentrate on the small ones we have going and make them as good as we can. The Lord appreciates ALL sincere efforts, and you don’t have to do something great for Him to be pleased with you, just do His will.

And as always, I’ve left the best for last: ‘LOVE yourself. It is important to stay positive because beauty comes from the inside out.’ Words of immense wisdom and common sense my brethren! Remember one of Jesus’ commands, in fact the second great commandment was to LOVE your neighbour as you LOVED yourself. (Matt.22:39)

That means you have to be at peace with yourself and like yourself, if you are going to have similar emotions for someone else. But unfortunately too many of us, Christians included, don’t seem to like ourselves. Why? I really can’t say nuh. But that’s one of the reasons why there’s so much anger, hatred, violence, resentment and all the other negative emotions floating around in our world today.

If we liked ourselves more than we seem to do, there would be a lot less of that stuff doing the rounds, because we would have more beauty, more good stuff to share. That brings us to our Bit; momentous words of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. ‘Not that which goeth into the mouth that defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.’

Yeh friends, it’s what comes out of our mouths that defiles us, makes us nasty and angry and otherwise negative, not what goes in. As Jesus later on expatiates to the His disciples, when they didn’t understand His parable, re the blind leading the blind (Matt.15:13) ‘Are ye also yet without understanding? Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out (eliminated) into the draught?

But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart, and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashed hands defileth not a man.’ (Matt.15:16-20)

Yes my people, the scribes and Pharisees had complained earlier on about the disciples eating with unwashed hands, which was a big thing in Jewish society back then. But Jesus put them in their place by telling them about all the hypocritical things that they did, that came from within them, that were much worse than eating with unwashed hands. (Matt.15:1-11)

So friends, let’s spend some time this weekend pondering the state of our own hearts nuh, to see what’s in there that will tend to defile us when we open our mouths. And whatever we find, please, let’s ask the Lord to help us eradicate it, so that when we speak, only good stuff will come forth. Much LOVE!

…every man…will eventually give account…for every word he has ever spoken…

SCRIP-BITS

Today’s Scrip-Bit 4 January 2019 Matthew 28:19.

Today’s Scrip-Bit 3 March 2018 Matthew 15:11.

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