Today’s Scrip-Bit 15 December 2020 Acts 12:5.

15 Dec 2020 Leave a comment

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

Acts 12:5.     ​Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.

Aye mih people, sing it with me nuh this winter Tuesday morn with a dusting of snow on the ground: ‘What a good God we serve, what a great God we serve, what a faithful God we serve!’ One more time: ‘What a good God we serve, what a great God we serve, what a faithful God we serve!’ And isn’t that the God-awesome and gospel truth! Jehovah God: He of many parts and names, is indisputably El Numero Uno, Number One! No doubt about it, for there’s none else like Him! Bless His most holy name! 

And you all must be wondering why the ole fella so enthusiastic and praiseful eh? Well it’s quite simple. Jehovah Rapha, the God who heals, acted faithfully on two people very near and dear to my heart who had surgery yesterday. Yes, they both seem to have come out of it successfully… Give God all the praise and glory, because He’s promised to look after His people, and that’s what he does as faithfully as ever! 

And that’s also why we say and know that prayer is the most powerful and potent tool and force in God’s universe! Yes, prayers were made for them, just like the Good Book talks about how prayers were made on Peter’s behalf when he was in jail facing certain death. ‘Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.’ (Acts 12:5) 

Well just like the Lord divinely released Peter, (Acts 12:6-11) the same way He divinely brought my people through surgery. Praise His holy name! The big difference there though is that when my people knocked on our door after they were relieved and released, we didn’t think that the messenger who brought the news was crazy, as the early church did when Peter showed up at the door of John Mark’s mother’s house where they were praying for him. 

The Good Book tells it thus: ‘And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken (answer), named Rhoda. And when she knew Peter’s voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in and told how Peter stood before the gate. And they said unto her, Thou art mad (out of your mind). But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, It is his angel. But Peter continued knocking: and when they had opened the door, and saw him, they were astonished.’ (Acts 12:13-16) 

Now what does that say of their faith eh? Not a whole lot. But we can’t be too hard on them because unfortunately we still do that same thing fairly often. I don’t know why, but we ofttimes pray for things and people, and when they happen, we refuse to believe, or have difficulty believing it. What’s the point of praying for it then eh? I think it shows a lack of true faith and trust in God. We talk much about His wonderfulness, but when it comes to accepting it by faith, we fall woefully short. Just look at the people who prayed for Peter. 

But please remember these immortal words of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ: ‘Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire. When ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.’ (Mark 11:22-24) 

So yuh see friends, the whole of our faith hinges on the word ‘belief!’ Even Jesus’ most prominent pronouncement requires the ability to believe: ‘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) We need to believe before we see my brethren. But I guess with our human nature and the way of the world so greatly ingrained in us, sometimes that’s difficult to do. Even when we see it first, we often refuse to believe it. 

But we better believe that’s how it is in God’s kingdom. In His economy, you won’t see much of anything until you believe. And that’s just a way to build our faith and trust in Him. If we could do it all in our own strength, then we wouldn’t have any need for God. But the sad truth of the matter is that we are rather feeble without God’s help, that’s why we struggle so much when we stray away from Him. No wonder Jesus castigated those around Him so often with words like ‘O ye of little faith!’ (Matt. 8:26) 

Yes my people, it takes great faith to sincerely follow Christ, and that faith is not easily built either, or in a short time. Just look at the ‘sufferation’ Bruh Paul endured nuh. Most of us would have given up long before we even begun. (smile) But he persevered, and eventually won his race, won the crown of righteousness that the Lord had set aside for him, and for all who LOVE and stand steadfast and strong in His awesome name. (2 Tim. 4:6-8) Now likewise, we modern day believers need to come up over our problems, rather than have them come up over us, especially in these tough and uncertain times. 

We Christians ought to be the salt and light to the unbelievers; truly let the Lord’s word be a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path; to lead and guide us in this dark and evil world, shining ever so brightly like a city set on a hill, like a lighthouse on a rocky promontory and giving light and flavour to the whole world! Wow! That’s when the world will know what a real Christian, and the Church, the Body of Christ, truly are. We need to have faith, enthusiasm, positivity, hope, and LOVE to burn! That means improvements and increase all around! 

And because we are so blessed by Christ’s selfless sacrifice on the cross for us, we definitely need to come up higher. And now that Christmas is coming too, when we celebrate Christ’s birth… Brother! We believers ought to be the happiest, the ‘joyfullest,’ the most easy going, cheerful and generous people on God’s great earth, because Christ has overcome the world! And only when we truly and sincerely show those Christian traits and values, only then will the unbelievers take us seriously and want to come to Jesus to get the awesome joy and faith that we possess. 

Now let’s go home declaring (yeahhh!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting this evil 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!’ 

So what we waiting for then eh? Let’s go out and share Christ’s LOVE and friendship! (smile) Much LOVE!

…it’s high time for Christians…to seriously walk their talk… 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 12 June 2019 Acts 12:5.

12 Jun 2019 Leave a comment

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

Acts 12:5.    ​Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.
 

Oh friends, 11 of them down, ONLY 22 more to go! Wow! And I’m not talking about friends passing on, (smile) I’m talking about visits to the hospital for them to zap some cancer cells they claim are existing and thriving where my prostate once lay. You could have knocked me over with a feather when the doctor told me I needed 33 sessions! 

And no, it’s not a difficult situation, because the radiation only takes about 15 minutes per session, but is it ever inconvenient; five days a week, Monday to Friday, with a full bladder and empty bowels. That is where the difficulty comes in. And the cut-tail part for me is that the heart people don’t want me to have too much fluid in my body, so they give me stuff to get it out, but these radiation people want me to full up my poor soul and body with water. 

I’ve already begun drinking water for today’s session. (smile) So for one part of the day I’m piling in the water, then the next part I’m letting it back out. Brother, can it ever be a pain…in the you know where! (smile) It even interferes with my sleep! But if they say it’s all for my good, then I can’t really complain. And I was able to get the treatments transferred to a cancer hospital close to me, because no way was I going into the big city five days a week for almost 7 weeks. 

And now you’re up to date on all the renovations the Lord’s putting me through… And to be truthful, I wasn’t really expecting this one nuh. I thought we were all done with renovations. It’s going on two and half years of steady renovations now. And the medical people were so aggressive! I was willing to put it off for a while, but they wanted it done now! Ah Lord eh! Sometimes I think they just take pleasure in zapping people. (smile) And are there ever a lot of people coming to get zapped! 

But let’s hope it’s all because the Lord intends for me to live a much longer life than I would have without those renovations …otherwise it doesn’t make sense. (smile) So what else is new eh? Not much nuh… Oh you know that Alyssa has come home from the hospital and is recuperating slowly but surely. She still needs our prayers though to help her stand strong and face the unpalatable situation. So please keep praying for her. 

And for your info, she’s a lay-reader in her church, and right now we’re pretty short on lay-readers, so we need her back as quickly as possible to help do the Lord’s work on a Sunday. (smile)  And today I’m being led to highlight the importance of prayer for our fellow believers by individuals, as well as the church community as a whole. 

And this was shown so clearly and powerfully in the early church after Herod killed James and imprisoned Peter. The Good Book states it thus: ‘Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.’  

Oh friends, that is something we don’t do nearly as much as we ought to, especially in these very evil and ungodly times. That’s a big part of what the church is supposed to be about. But unfortunately in this ‘I, me and myself ‘ society, we don’t have much time for others, even fellow saints in Christ. That’s because we supposed saints are behaving too much like the world, being of it, and not merely in it, like Jesus commanded. 

And we all know what happened when the church prayed for Peter, at least I hope so (smile). The angel of the Lord came and helped him escape from prison. (Acts 12:6-10) Poor Peter never even knew what was really happening, it happened so quickly and so miraculously. Please read it if you don’t know it. 

And I like how the Good Book says: ‘And when Peter was come to himself, he said, Now I know of a surety (for certain), that the Lord hath sent his angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews.’ (Acts 12:11) Yes my people, our great God still does those things on behalf of His people. 

But what happened after Peter was left on the sidewalk outside the prison by the angel, is cause for some concern. He ended up at ‘the house of Mary, the mother of John, whose surname was Mark; where many were gathered together praying. And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken (answer) named Rhoda. 

And when she knew Peter’s voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in, and told how Peter stood before the gate. And they said unto her, Thou art mad (out of your mind). But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, It is his angel. But Peter continued knocking: and when they had opened the door, and saw him, they were astonished.’ (Acts 12:12-16) 

No wonder Jesus continually derided His people with the words, ‘O ye of little faith!’ Just imagine nuh, that group of believers were praying intently and fervently for Peter’s safety, but when the Lord answered their prayers, they found it difficult to believe. As the scholars so aptly put it. ‘12:12-16. Though the prayer of the church was fervent due to Peter’s situation (v.5), there was a deficiency in faith (vs.15-16) Evidently they did not believe God would answer in this miraculous way, or so soon.’ 

And unfortunately that deficiency in faith still exists even today when we have so much more reason to be strong in faith than the early church had. It all depends on ‘belief’ friends. Listen to Jesus tell it like it is nuh. ‘Therefore I say unto you, what things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.’ (Mark 11:24) 

What’s the point of praying if you don’t think you’ll receive what you pray for eh? You won’t get all you pray for, especially if it’s outside the Lord’s will, but you won’t get it either if you don’t have strong belief. That’s what faith is all about my people. So let’s try and get a li’l stronger in the belief and faith department nuh my people. With God’s help obviously, since we can’t do it on our own. 

And having sifted and settled all of that in our souls and spirits (smile) let’s go home declaring (right ho!) our Wednesday Wail, letting the world know of our safe and steadfast position in Christ Jesus. All together now: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! 

I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’ 

And believe you me my faithful brethren, that future will be so awesome and magnificent, that our small, simple minds can’t even contemplate it! Much LOVE!

…it’s a smiley kind of day…and why not…the sun’s shining brightly…and the Good Lord is in His heaven running things…Glory be…

 

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 20 December 2016 Ephesians 4:32.

20 Dec 2016 Leave a comment

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

Ephesians 4:32.    And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God, for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.

Aye friends, we all know that like oil and water, late nights and early mornings don’t mix. So please tell me why I insist on trying to make them mix eh? I guess you’ll realize by now that I had one of those extremely late nights, and the ole body refused to get up too early to write the Bit. (smile) 

But that’s life mih breddren. At least I’m alive and kicking, though somewhat late. And enough with the excuses, let’s get to a rather appropriate poem from our One Year Book of Bible Promises, with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. It’s titled ‘Slow Growth.’ 

And it says: ‘In my fretful impatience I am so often inclined to ask “Why can’t she change?” “Why is she always so slow?” “Will they ever learn from past mistakes?” And then You begin to impress me With my own slow progress upward. 

I see Your stretched-out patience. I remember how long You’ve waited for me. And I grieve that my attitude Is so often intolerant. O God, keep fresh the imprint Of my own need to grow And make me more flexible More understanding And always more LOVING.’ 

Ah mih people, how many of us fall into that trap eh? We complain about the slowness and negative attitudes of others, only to later on find out that our progress is just as slow and negative, if not slower and more negative. 

We just seem to take immense pleasure in judging others, without paying any, or sufficient attention to our own shortcomings. Now that’s definitely not right my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. Instead we should have the attitude as declared by the Bible Promise for that poem, which is also our Bit for today. 

However, let’s begin with the verse before it, so that we can have a better idea of the context. Bruh Paul was here explaining to the Ephesians the new life in Christ that Christians ought to live after they are saved. 

And having given them a long list of do’s and don’ts, he finally ends up thus: ‘Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God, for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.’ (Eph.4:31-32) 

Yeh friends, if there are two things we always need to remember in our dealings with our fellow man are the forgiveness and LOVING-kindness that the Lord God Almighty has shown us in our own lives, and show the same to those we come into contact with. 

Remember what Jesus said to His disciples after the withering of the fig tree. ‘Therefore I say unto you, what things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. 

And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have aught (anything) against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.’ (Mark 11:24-26) 

Oh precious people of Christ, I don’t see how Jesus could have made the utmost importance of forgiveness any clearer nuh! But yet we still refuse to forgive others, while seeking forgiveness from heaven. 

It’s NEVER going to work my brethren! Only as we forgive, will we be forgiven. Forgiveness begins with us! Let’s try and remember that nuh, especially in this Christmas season, one of LOVE, caring and compassion in honour of Christ’s birth. 

And in regards to tenderheartedness, let’s check out this sermon on the Christian virtues, as outlined by Bruh Paul in his letter to the Colossians. ‘Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies (tender mercies), kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long-suffering; 

Forbearing (bearing with) one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. And above all these things put on charity (LOVE), which is the bond of perfectness. 

And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 

And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.’ (Col.3:12-17) 

Oh my people, my people, what a wise and powerful prescription for earthly living! Can you imagine if Christians even put half of that stuff into their everyday lives, what a wonderful world we’d have? 

But as usual, we like to merely talk the talk and not walk the walk. But let me remind us friends that Christianity is an action movement, not simply a talk show. Jesus came and died for us, putting His words into actions. Now it’s up to us to do the same. 

And to help us do that, let’s go home declaring our Tuesday Mantra with power and faith, and a strong sense of purpose. 

As one now: ‘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!’ 

And as we believe those foundational truths my brethren, let’s put them into action nuh, otherwise it’s all a big waste of time. Much LOVE!

…only as we are tenderhearted and forgiving…will we receive the same…