Today’s Scrip-Bit 13 March 2020 Psalm 57:7.

13 Mar 2020 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 57:7.    ‘My heart is fixed (steadfast), O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.
 
Welcome to a wild and windy Friday 13th in my neighbourhood. At least it’s stopped raining now, but the wind is still kicking up an almighty fuss, been doing it since last night, for what reason he alone knows. And yes, it is Friday the 13th, that means all sorts of foolish superstitions are being trotted out today; like don’t walk under a ladder, or let a black cat cross your path, or break a mirror. Hn, Hn! It’s a wonder how supposedly sensible people still have and believe in all kinds of superstitious stuff. 

This Friday the 13th nonsense is even attributed to the fact that Jesus on Maundy Thursday, the night of the Last Supper, had 13 people at the table, and one was the traitor Judas and He was crucified on the Friday. So thus the number 13 and Friday have become forever intertwined with bad luck. But today though a lot of people are glad it’s Friday, be it the 13th or not, because Friday heralds the start of their time off from work, and most don’t care about the date, like the ordinary workingman who utters this spiel. 

‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday oui! Just the thought of the weekend, and no slave labour to attend, lifts my soul and spirit to great heights. I don’t care what anybody else says, but the weekend is always the best time for me, because I can do whatever I want to do and nobody can say me nay! And please doh tell me nothing about this Friday the 13th superstitious nonsense nuh. Steups! What a shame that big, sensible people still hold all these superstitions eh, when time and time again they’ve proven to be merely fairy tales. 

But the evil people amongst us just like to have these evil things around so that they can hold some stupid people in grip. But yuh know what? Today, or any Friday 13th, I’m not going to purposely walk under a ladder, or cross paths with a black cat, or break a mirror just to prove it’s all nonsense. I’m way way smarter than that! I’m just going to keep thanking God for Fridays and weekends and let the chips fall where they may!’ 

Hn! I don’t think that any of us are going to go out of our way to try and prove those superstitions wrong either. (smile) I guess though, that it takes all kinds of things to make up a world like ours, including evil superstitions. But since we have the One and Only, the REAL McCOY: Jesus, as our Lord and Saviour, that kind of stuff doesn’t bother us at all eh… and I hear some low murmurs, as though that isn’t completely true. (smile) Anyway, we won’t go there this morning, let’s just chant our Friday Chant and show the world how we’re purposely different on the weekends. 

As one, strong, sincere voice: ‘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 mih people, we can’t bother with all the world’s foolishness, because we have a serious job to do; to keep Jesus’ name front and centre amongst the heathen and unbelieving world. But we must rest and have entertainment, though we can’t afford to let it all hang out, cause that’s when the enemy creeps into our souls and spirits and causes us to be less than who we truly are, or who we want to be. And we do want to be good examples – salt and light, good ambassadors for our Leader. 

And I just discovered some very useful and uplifting scripture to help us do that; these immortal words of Bruh David from Psalm 57, on one of the many occasions he hid in a cave from Saul and his other enemies. He declares: ‘Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; let thy glory be above all the earth. They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down: they have digged a pit before me, in the midst whereof they are fallen themselves.   Selah.’ (Ps. 57:5-6) 

Yeh friends, the enemy is laying all kinds of snares and pits for us to fall into, so that we can cause disrespect to the name of our Lord and Saviour. But if we’re strong and steadfast, stay solidly under His umbrella, the enemy themselves will be caught in their own traps. Now listen to Bruh David as he shows us how to neutralize the attacks of the enemy. 

‘My heart is fixed (steadfast), O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise. Awake up, my glory; awake psaltery (lute) and harp: I myself will awake early (awaken the dawn). I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people: I will sing unto thee among the nations (gentiles). For thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds. Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens: let thy glory be above all the earth.’ (Ps. 57:7-11) 

Yes my fellow believers, praising our magnificent and magnanimous God is the best way to diffuse the enemy’s power in our lives. He can’t intrude when we are praying and praising! And you’ll notice that Bruh David, though he was fleeing for his life, after lamenting his situation to God in the first part of the psalm, turned to prayer and worship to lift his spirits and keep him strong. That’s how we ought also to operate. 

There’s nothing wrong with telling God our fears and problems, in fact he desires us to come to Him with them, but then we can’t stay in the doldrums forever, we have to use His Word and His awesome promises, and remember the things that He has already done for us to raise our spirits, so that the enemy won’t be able to keep us down, because he knows that the joy of our Lord is our strength. (Neh. 8:10) 

Once we aren’t joyful, he can easily have his way with us. So today my brethren, let’s start praising and glorifying and exalting our great God nuh, despite the many tough situations we face, because that’s the only way we will ever come out of them successfully and do Jesus’ work with diligence and excellence! Much LOVE!

…our problems can be surmounted…by sincerely praising God…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 30 June 2018 John 14:6.

30 Jun 2018 Leave a comment

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

John 14:6.   Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.

And the Canada Day celebrations continue apace! And the weather seems to be in full cooperating mood too; it’s supposed to be a scorcher, possibly worse than yesterday. So get on your sunscreen and turn on the A/C, and celebrate the birth of this wonderful country called Canada, within the limits of Granny’s warnings though! (smile) 

Oh we have our problems too, but of all the big countries in the world, I still believe that Canada is the BEST! Go Canada! 

And so having ‘big-upped’ Canada; I hate the word, ‘big-up’ but I couldn’t think of anything more suitable at the time, let’s move on to our Saturday treat of this weeks quotes from our friend Anselm, who sincerely aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. 

And this week there’s a whole slate of them, starting with: ‘Choose to be optimistic, it feels better.’ And there’s absolutely no doubt about the truth and wisdom in that statement, for optimism is a foundation stone of our Christian faith. 

That leads to the next quote: ‘Just one small positive thought in the morning can change your whole day.’ That also has many grains of truth in it, for if we begin our day with positive thoughts, we will indeed be starting out on the right foot.  

Then there is: ‘Good luck is when opportunity meets preparation, while bad luck is when lack of preparation meets reality.’ It’s basically true, but we believers just don’t dabble in bad luck and good luck, but more the blessed favour, grace and mercy of our awesome God. 

But we must do our part in the partnership and be prepared for them. If we aren’t prepared, when those opportunities appear or arise, then we’ll simply lose out on a chance, no, an opportunity to be blessed by Almighty God. 

Listen to this one: ‘Don’t Take Anything Personally. Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won’t be the victim of needless suffering.’ 

Now I don’t know if I agree with that totally, because there are times when people do things because of us, and we ought to take them personally. The problem is to know when and what things to take issue with. A lot of the time what others do and say is indeed because of their own problems or inadequacy and we have to be wise and somewhat tough skinned to recognize those times and not allow them to bother us. 

It’s all a balancing act my people, and we do need God’s help to set the balance right. And the last quote says: ‘The more you are positive and say, ‘I want to have a good life,’ the more you build that reality for yourself by creating the life that you want.’ 

Ah friends, that statement is only true in the context of Christianity! If you say you want to build a good life under Christ, then fine. But if you want to build what the world and the prince of darkness call a good life, then you’re definitely on the wrong track. Remember the immortal words of Jesus: ‘Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.’ 

Yes friends, Jesus was very emphatic in that pronouncement, so if your life is not modelled on His, then you’re indeed going the wrong way, building your life, earthly as well as eternal, on the wrong foundation. 

And Jesus makes His point earlier when He declares that He is the Good shepherd: ‘Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep… 

I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for (except) to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.’ (John 10:1-2, 9-11) 

And that is exactly what Jesus did friends: give His life for us, the sheep of His pasture. So why would we look for some other foundation on which to build our lives eh? Building our lives upon Jesus is like building them on a rock; a rock which stands the test of time and the elements of nature. Building our lives on anything else is like building them on sand, which cannot repel or withstand anything. Check out Jesus’ analogy re the two foundations, in Matthew .7:24-27. 

And we’ll close with some more immortal words of Jesus on the subject, as He spoke to Martha when He arrived late on purpose for Lazarus’ burial. ‘Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead (may die) yet shall he live. And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?’ (Matt.11:25-26) 

And as the scholars say: ‘11:25: I am the resurrection is one of Jesus’ greatest “I am” statements, signifying His power to give eternal life.’ 

And oh my people, if Jesus has that awesome power, why wouldn’t I believe in Him eh, and shout out a bold and confident ‘YES’ to the question He asked Martha at the end of the last passage above: ‘Believest thou this?’ 

Oh friends, believing in Jesus is not only the epitome of wisdom, it is wisdom itself! Much LOVE!

…the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge…but fools despise wisdom and instruction… (Prov.1:7)

 

 

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 26 April 2018 2 Peter 1:4.

26 Apr 2018 Leave a comment

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

2 Peter 1:4.    Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Oh friends, this salutation seemed like the best way to begin today’s message, as it runs with our Bit. And if it was good enough for Peter, it’s good enough for me. (smile) Randy O’Brien, ‘a servant of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like (the same kind of) precious faith with us through the righteousness of (our) God and Saviour Jesus Christ.  Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through (in) the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord, 

According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to (by) glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.’ (2 Peter 1:1-4) 

Oh my fellow believers, you all hear that? Through our belief in Jesus Christ, we’ve been given ALL things that pertain to life and godliness, accompanied by ‘great and precious promises’ which help us get away, and stay away from the lustful and licentious behaviour of this evil world. Wow! What could be better than that eh friends? NOTHING REALLY! 

The Lord has implanted His Holy Spirit to dwell in ALL believers, and the power of the third person of the Holy Trinity provides ALL that we need, or will ever need to be successful in this life. Please remember that, and seriously take hold of it nuh. 

The fruit of the Spirit has already been planted in us, all we have to do now is ask the Lord to help us water and nurture them so that they can grow and show up in our lives, so that we can be good examples to the world, salt and light, and glorify and exalt His most precious and Holy Name! Glory be my brethren! 

And we going to continue looking at some of God’s promises today. And this is one of my favourite, because I am currently living it. The immortal and oh so true words of Bruh David. ‘Trust in the Lord and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed (feed on his faithfulness). 

Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgement (justice) as the noonday.’ (Ps.37:3-6)

Oh friends, if it’s one thing I can testify to is the Lord’s faithfulness. Although I’ve been going through a rough time medically this past year and a half, with no real relief in sight, you wouldn’t believe how the Lord has been blessing me during this time, surprisingly making some of the desires of my heart come to pass. Brother! Is he ever a wonderful God! 

The problem with most of us is that we expect something for nothing – both from man and God. But that’s not real life my people! Generally speaking, you get back when and what you give. As Uncle Charles (Charles Stanley) likes to say; ‘You reap what you sow, more than you sow, and later than you sow.’ That’s just a fact of nature! 

That brings us to this awesome but also frightening promise: ‘For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.’ (Romans 6:23) Yeh mih breddren, if you insist on following the sinful, lustful world, death will be your eventual reward. 

However, if you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour and do your best to be obedient to His rules and principles, then you will receive the most wonderful gift there is; that of salvation and everlasting life with Christ. As the scholars tell us: ‘6:23. Wages: Emphasizes what we deserve. Gift of God: Emphasizes God’s unmerited favour.’ 

Yuh see the difference friends? One is what you deserve; the other is mercy, giving you something good that you don’t deserve. And please remember that salvation is indeed a gift from God, we can’t do anything to deserve it. All the good works we do mean nothing unless we believe in Christ as Lord and Saviour, for that’s the way the Lord set it up, so that none of us could boast about our good works. 

And that, I think, brings us to the end of these messages on the promises of God. I implore us to study them and take them to heart, because as Peter says, they’ve been given to us so that we can lead a good and prosperous life here on earth. Please don’t let them go to waste, and then complain about your bad luck and other negative situations. Then you only have yourself to blame. 

Now let’s go home declaring our Thursday Blessings which have been showered down on us because we have tried to be obedient to God’s law and have taken up and held on to His many generous promises. All together now: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! 

I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! 

I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’ 

And one of God’s most important laws is for us to now go out and share those blessings with the less fortunate! Much LOVE!

…promises…promises…I’m standing on the promises of Christ my God…

 

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 26 November 2016 Daniel 9:9.

26 Nov 2016 Leave a comment

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

Daniel 9:9.   To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled against him.  

Ah mih friends, Black Friday is over – Praise the Lord! And as always, we had the unruly leggo beast behaviour, the fights and the shootings. What is this life coming to eh? But if you think all the rigmarole is over, you’d better think again, for come Monday, it’s the online frenzy on what has now become known as Cyber Monday. 

Ah Lord eh! How many more new days can we get in the shopping calendar, especially when so many people are out of work and can barely make two ends meet? But the captains of commerce don’t care, they just want to sell their stuff, regardless of whom it impoverishes or bankrupts. 

I don’t know why we can’t resist these so-called sales, although we know that a lot of the things have not really been marked down, and for the few prices that have been lowered, several others have been raised. The sale talk is just a ploy to get us to come into the store, because they know once we are there we will buy other stuff at the marked up prices. 

I guess it’s just the greed in human nature that propels us to these things, and I thank the Lord that I don’t get involved in the madness.  

Now it’s Saturday, so it’s time to share a couple of quotes from our friend Anselm, who aspires to inspire us to a better tomorrow. And the first quote of today says: ‘It’s a long time until the next election, but it starts now. And if you truly want to see things change in the direction that our country is headed, you have to stay involved. You cannot quit now.’ 

Oh friends, truer words have never been spoken. It’s the civic responsibility of each citizen to get and stay involved in day to day politics and events in their country, especially if you want to see change. 

And that is rather appropriate in these times to the U.S with the unconscionable stuff that is taking place down there after the election of Donald Trump. If the people seriously want change at the next election in four years, they have to begin NOW to make their voices heard. 

And today’s second quote from our friend Anselm is one of pure truth. ‘Never deprive someone of hope; it might be all they have.’ That’s wonderful advice my people! 

So often in this negative and crazy world we tell people stuff that just kills whatever little hope they might have. Sometimes we do it on purpose, but ofttimes we do it unknowingly, then go our way rejoicing, not knowing that we have just caused someone else’s joy to plummet. 

No wonder Bruh Paul told the Roman church: ‘Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify (build up) another.’ (Rom.14:19) Yes my fellow believers, our words should always be chosen to build up and not tear down our fellow man. 

That brings us to the portion of the Prophet Daniel’s prayer for his people Israel, which contains our Bit. Before our Bit, he confesses. ‘O Lord, to us belongeth confusion of face (shame), to our kings, our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against thee. 

To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled against him. Neither have we obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets.’ (Dan.9:8-10)  

Oh friends, those three verses are so applicable to our world today that it’s not funny. We should indeed feel ashamed for the overwhelming amount of sin that has befallen our society in the last 25 years. We obviously have not obeyed God’s directive to walk in His laws. Instead we have foolishly chosen to walk in the ways of the prince of darkness, Lucifer. 

But thankfully, for our sakes, we have a God who is not only magnificent, but also magnanimous; He is ever merciful and all forgiving, despite our rebellious and ungodly behaviour. But don’t fool yuh fat, don’t get complacent and doh care, for although our God is merciful and forgiving, He is also a God of judgement and justice and there will be consequences for our continual rebellion and sinfulness. 

Now do you think that all the dreadful disasters that are happening in our world, one after the other, both natural and man-made, are simply coincidence or bad luck? I doubt it very much. I’m sure that there is some amount of divine retribution involved. I just don’t know how much. 

If the Lord, down through the ages, starting with His people Israel, could wreak havoc on ungodly nations, why do you think He won’t wreak it on us eh, as sinful as we are? There is no reason why He won’t. 

As they say ‘time longer than twine,’ and our God just has plenty patience, He is long-suffering, and in the fullness of time, if we don’t smarten up and repent, change our evil ways and return to His fold, we will see and feel His judgement. 

And listen to Daniel a few verses later. ‘As it is written in the law of Moses, all this evil (disaster) is come upon us: yet made we not our prayer before the Lord our God, that we might turn from our iniquities, and understand thy truth. Therefore hath the Lord watched upon the evil (kept the disaster in store), and brought it upon us: for the Lord our God is righteous in all his works which he doeth: for we obeyed not his voice.’ (Dan.9:13-14) 

There you have it friends; the same things I just mentioned. And hopefully, if you didn’t believe me, then you will believe the man of God, the prophet Daniel… otherwise things will be extremely rough with us. In other words, crapaud smoke we pipe! Much LOVE!

…this world can only be saved…if we sincerely repent and return to diligently serving the Lord God Jehovah…

 

 

 

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 13 May 2016 Psalm 33:15‏

13 May 2016 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 33:15.   He fashioneth their hearts alike (individually); he considereth (understands) all their works.

And it was Friday friends… and the rains came during the night…the early rain to water the dry and thirsty land, to irrigate the soil and make it more amenable to the sowing of good seed. 

And during that time lightning flashed sporadically, while Thor also beat his drums furiously, having the thunderous sound roll across the heavens in a mighty show of his awesome power! (smile) 

In other words friends, we had a big thunderstorm last night that provided much needed heavenly blessings for the earth, thus giving us a wet and cloudy Friday the 13th morning. 

Yes it is one of those superstitious Friday the 13th days that happen every so often during the year, and many of us will be on our p’s and q’s desperately trying to do, or not to do certain things that cause bad luck on such days. 

But precious people such belief is unworthy of a true believer in Jesus, because it’s just what it says it is – superstition – and can’t harm us in any way. 

And you’d note that a majority of the working populace are still shouting out loud and clear; ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday and the weekend is here! Forget about massa and his slave labour! It’s party time; we time to do what we want. Thank God ever so much for Friday’s oui!’ 

And again I have to warn us that lustful and licentious behaviour should not be the main aspects of our weekend, because that just digs us into a deeper hole of sin and sorrow. What we need are activities that are more in tune with our Friday Chant, which we’ll now proclaim with the appropriate sincerity and truth. 

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

Yes friends, the basic reason for the weekend is for us to rest and rejuvenate ourselves through godly fellowship, so that we can be strong and steadfast when the new workweek rolls along, not a tired, miserable, hung-over mess like so many of us end up being on a Monday morning. 

But enough of my haranguing, you’ll still do whatever you like. (smile) So let’s turn to our Bit, which gives us some insight into the wonderful workings of our ever-LOVING and omnipotent God. ‘He fashioneth their hearts alike (individually); he considereth (understands) all their works.’ 

Yes my brethren, our God has fashioned each of our hearts individually, we haven’t come off of a production line, where everything is the same. And on top of that, He takes a special and particular interest in every soul that He’s made. 

Listen, as the psalmist continues after our Bit. ‘There is no king saved by the multitude of a host: a mighty man is not delivered by much strength. A horse is a vain thing (false hope) for safety: neither shall he deliver any by his great strength. 

Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy; To deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine.’ (Ps.33:16-19) 

Yeh mih people, it’s all about the strength and LOVING-kindness of our magnificent God Jehovah, not about man’s strength which is sorely limited! 

And as Job’s friend, Elihu says so eloquently in his chastisement of Job: ‘For his (the Lord’s) eyes are upon the ways of man, and he seeth all his goings. There is no darkness, nor shadow of death, where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves.’ (Job 34:21-22) 

And as true believers, we all know that as gospel truth! The Lord looks down from His high heaven on all of us, and there’s no place that any of us can run or hide from His all-seeing, omniscient power. As Bruh David so wisely and wonderfully declares in Psalm 139 – The everlasting presence and power of God. 

‘Whither shall (can) I go from thy spirit? Or whither shall (can) I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell (Sheol), behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. 

If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me (fall on, hide me); even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee (is not dark to thee); but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.’ (Ps.139:7-12) 

Oh what beautiful words of scripture, my people! Gospel truth in black and white! There’s nowhere we can run or hide from our Creator, as so many of us futilely try to do. 

And we’ll end with these most appropriate words from Jeremiah’s prayer. ‘Great in counsel, and mighty in work (deed): for thine eyes are open upon all the ways of the sons of men: to give every one according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.’ (Jer.32:19) 

That says it all friends! Our God is continually looking down on us, checking our ways, so that He can meet out to us whatever we deserve. That means we just have to buckle down and live according to His will, if we want to receive His wondrous blessings and mercies. Much LOVE!

…why try to fight or hide from a God…who is omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent… that’s a fool’s wisdom…

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 13 November 2015 Proverbs 3:35

13 Nov 2015 Leave a comment

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

Proverbs 3:35. The wise shall inherit glory: but shame shall be the promotion (the legacy) of fools.

Well Friends, it’s Friday; Friday the 13th to boot… So what? Who believes in those old wives tales and witches manipulations anymore eh? I hope nobody, for a day is a day. It is made by the great God Jehovah and runs like any other day. 
 
So whether Friday falls on the thirteenth or the fourteenth or fifteenth, they are all made so that we can rejoice and be glad in them. 
 
So please lets forget about all the foolishness the enemy tries to put in our heads, about bad luck and otherwise on a day like today, and just enjoy the LOVING-kindness and blessings of our heavenly Father, as we normally do nuh. 
 
It’s amazing though that many who usually shout ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday, the weekend, and it’s time to party down the place,’ are quiet today. 
 
Come on my people, let’s focus on the weekend and what we’re going to do on our two days off rather than some nebulous, unsubstantiated black magic in the offing. And to overcome any dormant fears, let’s chant our Friday Chant with much gusto and confidence. 
 
As one chanter now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. 
 
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’ 
 
Yes Friends, that’s the template for the next few days! Put it to work and we’ll all be fine. And to go along with that, here is an appropriate quote from my ‘P.S. I LOVE You ‘ Poster. It says: ‘We can’t do much about our appearance, but we have total control over the kind of person we become.’ 
 
And generally speaking that’s true, because with all the plastic surgery and otherwise available today, we can change our appearance a fair amount. But, as for who we become on the inside, that’s totally up to us. 
 
People can give us all sorts of advice and direction, but in the long run it’s totally up to us decide what advice we’re going to take, what direction we’ll go in, and consequently what kind of person we will become. 
 
And hopefully, as believers in Jesus Christ, we will take His wise advice and go in the good and prosperous direction that He points us toward. That brings us to our Bit for today: ‘The wise shall inherit glory: but shame shall be the promotion (the legacy) of fools.’ 
 
And that’s no lie Friends, for we can see it writ large in our society, and even in our own small area of influence. Shame is cast upon those who insist on doing foolish things. It’s sad, and oftimes wrong, but we can do a million wise and good things, but are remembered for, and tormented by the one mistake or foolish thing we’ve done. But I guess that’s just the nature of the beast. 
 
Anyway, what I want to do today is simply highlight some scripture passages that deal with supposedly foolish behaviour, mainly from Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. But we’ll begin with this one from Psalm 4 – An evening prayer of trust in God. 
 
Bruh David asks the burning question back then. ‘O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame? How long will ye love vanity (worthlessness), and seek after leasing (falsehood)?  Selah.’ (Ps.4:2) 
 
Oh Friends, unfortunately that is still a burning question today, for mankind still refuses to give God His appropriate honour and glory, possibly even more so now than back then, because unashamedly we are going a whoring after all sorts of other gods and idols. And that my brethren will undoubted bring us a legacy of shame and nothing else. 
 
Now listen to Cousin Sol. Right at the beginning of Proverbs he proffers this serious warning. ‘The fear (reverential awe) of the Lord is the (principal) beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.’ (Prov.1:7) Yes Friends, wisdom begins by acknowledging Almighty God and all that He is! 
 
Now hear him in Chapter 10, where he begins contrasting the wise and the foolish ‘The lips of the righteous feed many: but fools die for want (lack) of wisdom.’ (Prov.10:21) 
 
Then in Chapter 11, Cousin Sol declares: ‘He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind: and the fool shall be the servant to the wise of heart.’ (Prov.11:29) No doubt about that Friends! We see it in our society all the time, where the wise lord it over the unwise. 
 
Now here are a couple of verses from Chapter 12, where Cousin Sol continues his contrasting between the wise and the foolish. ‘The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto (listens to) counsel is wise. A fool’s wrath is presently known (known at once): but a prudent man covereth shame.’ (Prov.12:15-16) Gospel truth that my brethren! 
 
Turning to Ecclesiastes, listen to these pearls of wisdom. ‘For a dream cometh through the multitude of business (effort or activity); and a fool’s voice is known by multitude of words.’ (Eccl.5:3) 
 
That brings us back to Proverbs, where Cousin Sol declares: ‘Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace (keeps silent), is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.’ (Prov.17:28) No disputing that my people, as we do it all the time! 
 
And we’ll end there for today. Don’t want to give us too much material to consider (smile), but I do hope that these sayings will have an impact on our behaviour, as we read and ponder them in regards to our own life, for I am sure that we all have room for improvement along those lines. Much LOVE!
 
…I was sometimes wise…but not seldom foolish…