Today’s Scrip-Bit   26 June 2022   2 Timothy 2:4.

26 Jun 2022 Leave a comment

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

2 Timothy 2:4.      Thou therefore endure hardness (hardship), as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.  ​​

Come Sunday morning, we’ll be singing and praising our wonderful God on His day! And that’s just the way it ought to be, believers gathered together, be it physically in a sanctuary, by technological means, or outdoors in the wilds of nature, as my church will be doing today at our annual outdoors church service and picnic in a nearby park, the first for about three years. Now that’s all predicated on the weather staying warm and sunny like it’s been for the last number of days. But knowing how persnickety and contrary the weather can be these days, nothing can be taken for granted. 

And for today’s song of praise, we have an oldie but goldie; one of our long time favourites, aptly titled ‘Onward Christian Soldiers,’ with lyric written by Sabine Baring-Gould in 1865, and the music by Arthur Sullivan in 1871. It’s become one of our ‘favouritest’ processional hymns, but underneath, it bears a strong incentive and encouragement to stand up strong and fight for Christ like we are in His army. So now, let’s raise our voices in sacrificial praise in a powerful, scintillating, sincere up-tempo version. 

‘Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war, With the cross of Jesus going on before! Christ, the royal Master, leads against the foe; Forward into battle, see his banner go! (Refrain: Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war, With the cross of Jesus going on before!) At the sign of triumph Satan’s host doth flee; On, then, Christian soldiers, on to victory! Hell’s foundations quiver at the shout of praise; Brothers, lift your voices, loud your anthems raise! [Refrain] 

Like a mighty army moves the church of God; Brothers, we are treading where the saints have trod; We are not divided; all one body we, One in hope and doctrine, one in charity. [Refrain] Onward, then, ye people, join our happy throng, Blend with ours your voices in the triumph song; Glory, laud, and honor, unto Christ the King; This thro’ countless ages men and angels sing. [Refrain: Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war, With the cross of Jesus going on before! With the cross of Jesus going on before!’ 

Yes friends, that was indeed rich and scintillating! And I do hope we truly meant every word we sang, and that those words will encourage us to go out today and in the upcoming week to stand strong and steadfast for Christ! Because we are in a war, a spiritual war, as Bruh Paul said to the Corinthians: ‘For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after (according) to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal (of the flesh) but mighty through God (spiritual) to the pulling down of strongholds. Casting down imaginations (arguments, thoughts), and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.’ (2 Cor. 10:3-5) 

It means, that anything that doesn’t coincide with God’s word, we have to take spiritual authority over it and cast it out with the Lord’s help, because our mind is the battlefield where the spiritual war is being fought. Satan wants to take control of it, but we must use Christ’s power to withstand his evil machinations. That’s why Bruh Paul advised the Ephesians thus: ‘Finally my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles (evil schemes) of the devil.’ (Eph. 6:10-11) 

Oh my brethren, we desperately need to be armoured up with God’s protection then stand up strong against Satan, for he carefully devises evil schemes and strategies against Christ’s people. And Bruh Paul continues to enlighten the Ephesians on the matter. ‘For we wrestle not against flesh and blood (we don’t fight against human beings), but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world (age), against spiritual hosts of wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you (take up, put on) the whole armour of God that ye may be able to withstand in the day, and having done all to stand.’ (Eph. 6:12-13) 

Yes, my fellow saints without God’s armour, Christ’s church cannot fight the spiritual battle against the forces of evil that is currently being waged in our world. And some of you must be wondering what’s this armour of God. Well just like the battle we are fighting, the armour is spiritual. It consists of the loin cloth of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the sandals of the gospel peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And then praying always in the Spirit for all the saints. 

Now,  that’s basically God’s spiritual armour, but it’s very effective if we keep it on and use it right. And it’s the only way we are going to win the spiritual battle in which we are currently engaged. We must be good soldiers for Christ if we hope to make any headway against the enemy. 

It’s like Bruh Paul said to Timothy on the subject. ‘Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also. Thou therefore endure hardness (hardship), as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.’  (2 Tim. 2:3-4) 

There you have it friends! If we want to be good soldiers of Christ, we cannot afford to get tangled up with the affairs of this world. Remember Jesus expects us to be in the world, but not of the world. It’s not going to be easy, for the life of a soldier is never easy. In our personal discipleship we will suffer affliction and hardship which we need to overcome through the help of the Holy Spirit in conjunction with our spiritual armour and our own conviction in and LOVE for Jesus! And I do hope that our song today will indeed offer us some encouragement in our ongoing battles, both internally and against the evil forces of our evil world. Much LOVE!

… to fight to the death for Jesus…is the believer’s greatest joy…

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit 5 March 2021 2 Timothy 2:3.

05 Mar 2021 Leave a comment

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

2 Timothy 2:3.     ​Thou therefore endure hardness (hardship) as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

And then, one more time, it was Friday! Hn! And what does this new day hold for us eh? Only the Good Lord truly knows, but for those who sincerely believe in Him, we do expect good things, like new mercies and compassions, because that’s what He has promised. And remember that He who has promised is faithful, faithful to deliver on ALL of His promises. 

So the expectations of believers should be high for good things to happen in our lives. As the saying goes: ‘Something good is going to happen to me today, and something good is going to happen through me today. Glory be mih bredrin. And it all happens through that magnificent principle called faith; the substance (realization) of things hoped for, the evidence (convictions) of things not seen.’ (Heb. 11:1) 

Yes friends, when we believe in Almighty God, creator of the universe and all therein, we can expect good things to happen, and wait with patience and perseverance, that’s hope and faith, for them to happen, regardless of how long they make take to come to fruition! 

Wow! That means never giving up or turning against Christ and each other though the trials and tribulations of this evil world bombard us unmercifully it. For if God is for us, NOBODY, or NOTHING whatsoever, not even the powerful and fearful pandemic, can be successful against us! And with that certainty playing in our minds, (smile) let’s hear what the ordinary workingman has to say today nuh. 

‘Oh brother! Thank God is Friday oui, and I’m another day closer to death, but also closer to work! When is work going to resume eh? When is this lockdown going to end eh, or even relaxed that a body can make a living to feed deh family and keep a roof over deh heads eh? I guess if you believe in God you have to keep living in hope…but let’s hope it’s not like the Jamaican saying, ‘Yuh live in Hope, but end up, die in Constant Spring!’ 

Yeh, hope springs eternal and all that, but with all the confusion that still going on with this pandemic business a lot of people losing hope – in the government, the medical people and God too. How sad the whole thing is, that this li’l virus can bring this great powerful world to its knees in no time at all and cause even more strife than was already present. Steups! I really don’t know what to say nuh, except that I can’t give up hope – ah have three young children to look after, so I just have to do whatever it takes to look after them as best I can, with God’s help.’ 

And yuh know friends, that’s all any of us can really do; our best, and pray, hope, believe that with God’s help it will turn out to be enough. Our world is really in topsy-turvy mode right now, with so much corruption, strife, tension, disagreements and what have you, that no one knows exactly how it will end or turn out, what the new normal will be. 

One thing is for sure, it won’t be like it was before. We will have to learn and deal with a whole lot of new stuff once this pandemic thing has settled down. And those who adapt to the new way of living the quickest, will probably have an edge over those who don’t adapt quickly. But it will be a whole new world, I don’t know if it will be brave though, (smile) but if we believers are in the forefront of it, it will be brave, because that’s all we know how to do,; be brave with Christ as our Lord and Saviour and Leader! 

That means, we believers have to get out there, right in the middle of the fray and fight for Jesus and His kingdom. That’s why Bruh Paul told Timothy: ‘Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus…Thou therefore endure hardness (hardship) as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.’ (2 Tim. 2:1,3) And we need not be afraid of getting out there and mixing it up for Jesus: ‘For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound and disciplined mind.’ (2 Tim. 1:7) 

So we have all the tools to deal with whatever comes against us. So let’s get with it nuh, so that we will be able to say like Bruh Paul did at the end. ‘For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure (death) is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course (race), I have kept the faith: henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all those that LOVE his appearing.’ (2 Tim. 4:6-8) 

And the best way to start that, as with ALL things, is by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving. So what we waiting for eh? Let’s come to God in prayer, though our Friday Chant. Altogether now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. Yuh know it’s been rough… what with all the anxiety, the confusion and havoc that the Covid-19 virus and the racial strife causing. We not accustomed to that kind of life Lord, and it really telling on us. And we know we can’t handle it on our own, that we desperately need your help. 

Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat both the virus and the unrest in our streets. So Lord, we sincerely ask you today to give the governments and those involved in the forefront of this serious and unexpected storm, the sure and wise guidance to handle the situation properly, with the least amount of loss to life and property as possible. And please help those of us who must go out to work amidst all the confusion, to be responsible and to stay safe, so that we can avoid any more serious setbacks. 

And Lord, we fervently pray that You’ll use this situation to also bring a lot of backsliders back to your fold, show them the error of their ways. It’s also a good opportunity to introduce a whole new flock, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion because of the way we, your faithful believers, handle the situation. Yes Lord, please use this pandemic and the unrest in the streets as a means of restoring faith in You, so that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’ 

Onward then Christian soldiers, faithful believers, let’s get out there and handle the situation so that Christ will be revered and venerated above all others and everything else! Much LOVE!

…we believers were made for this time…to show the confused, topsy-turvy world…that only Christ…can bring it peace and LOVE…