Today’s Scrip-Bit 20 June 2021 Psalm 118:24.

20 Jun 2021 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 118:24.     ​This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it!

Well a pleasant Sunday to you my Scrip-Bit friends and family! It’s another beautiful day in the life! Our God surely knows how to make them, doesn’t He! And we also wish a blessed and Happy Father’s Day to all the fathers out there, be they good, bad or indifferent! (smile) Oh, we know that our parents should be celebrated every day, but that’s not always possible, so we focus on one special day each year for each parent. 

Today is your day Fathers, so please enjoy it. So all around it’s a wonderful day! That means we can say like the psalmist did so sincerely, so long ago: ‘This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it!’ (Ps. 118:24) Glory Hallelujah my faithful brethren in Christ! 

And what better way to celebrate the Lord’s beautiful day and Father’s Day than by raising our voices in praise to the 18thcentury hymn written by clergyman Phillip Doddridge and made popular, became a gospel music standard in the 20thcentury by the Edwin Hawkins singers. You know that I’m talking about ‘Oh Happy Day!’ So without further ado, let’s get into it nuh, in an up-tempo beat, with loud, joyful, harmonious voices, let’s rock heaven…oh, and don’t forget those wonderful background vocals, because that’s the heart of the song. (smile) 

All together now: ‘Oh, happy day (Oh, happy day) Oh, happy day (Oh, happy day) When Jesus washed (When Jesus washed) Oh, when He washed (When Jesus washed) When Jesus washed (When Jesus washed) He washed my sins away (Oh, happy day) Oh, happy day (Oh, happy day) (Repeat) He taught me how (He taught me how) To watch and fight and pray Watch and pray And live rejoicing every day Every day Oh, happy day (Oh, happy day) Oh, happy day (Oh, happy day) When Jesus washed (When Jesus washed) Oh, when He washed (When Jesus washed) When Jesus washed (When Jesus washed) He washed my sins away 

(Oh, happy day) Oh, happy day (Oh, happy day) He taught me how (He taught me how) To watch and fight and pray Watch and pray And live rejoicing every day (Good God) Every day Oh, happy day (Oh, happy day) Oh, it’s a happy day (Oh, happy day) Oh, Lord (Oh, happy day) Mmm, good God (Oh, happy day) Oh yeah (Oh, happy day) Mmm, oh (Oh, happy day).’ 

Yes friends, it is indeed a happy day! And as always, we did justice to our song of praise, because all heaven was rocking along, with us, singing and clapping…this time we even caught Jesus singing and clapping while doing a li’l two step shuffle off in the corner. You know He is usually shy and reserved and doesn’t get too caught up in the merriment, but today the energy and joy pulsating from the music was too much for Him to resist. 

And a couple angels who saw Him jigging, gleefully shouted out: ‘Go there mih Saviour! Show them you could step too, when you so desire!’ Obviously Jesus blushed, but He didn’t stop dancing. Ah friends, our Lord and Saviour is indeed a man of many parts, and He wants to get involved in everything that we do. So please let’s not try to leave Him out of any areas of our lives, because we are the ones who suffer when we do that. 

And I guess because today is Father’s Day, I ought to say something spiritual to the Fathers? (smile) And there are lots of scriptures that deal with the responsibilities of fathers. The most well-known one I guess is in Bruh Paul’s epistle to the Ephesians, where he declares: ‘And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture (training) and admonition of the Lord.’ (Eph. 6:4) 

And just to be clear on what Bruh Paul means, here are some explanations from the scholars.‘6:4. Fathers can provoke their children to wrath by injustice, loss of temper, undue severity, cruelty, favouritism, suppression, sarcasm, ridicule, and misuse or abuse of authority. Nurture basically means “training,” here denoting spiritual education. Admonition is instruction that points out one’s responsibilities and duties. Of the Lord is in Greek a subjective genitive (names the subject of the action contained in another noun). This indicates that behind the parents’ rearing and instruction of their children stands the Lord as the chief teacher in child education. Parents do not raise children alone.’ 

Now that is something many of the parents of this generation need to learn; they cannot raise children in isolation from the Lord. Many are still trying though, and no wonder we have so many godless children in our society. Notwithstanding the serious absence of fathers in too many households. Remember friends, the father is the titular head of the family, and if there is no father present in a child’s rearing, or the father doesn’t do a good job then the child obviously suffers in the long run. 

That’s why Cousin Sol spells it out in Proverbs. ‘Train up a child in the way he should go, and (even) when he is old, he will not depart from it.’ (Prov. 22:6) And that’s the gospel truth friends! Have you ever noticed how many young people who grew up in Christian homes, at some point stray from their faith, but eventually return to it when they see that there’s no other way to live a good life? I can personally testify to that. (smile) 

And a few explanations from the scholars re Cousin Sol’s words.‘22:6. Train up a childrefers to the total process of molding a child’s life…. Thus parental training should help children develop a taste for the things of God. The biblical pattern of effective parental training emphasizes a balance of instruction and discipline (cf. Eph. 6:1-4). 

The ideal parent is to be neither overly authoritarian nor overly permissive. Rather, he must balance LOVE and discipline so as not to provoke his child to rebellion.When he is old means simply, “when he is grown up,” or a mature adult. It does not refer to his elderly years. The verse stresses the simple principle that education in the home forms the man throughout his lifetime.’ 

And there is much truth to all that the scholars and Cousin Sol say, but it’s all much easier said than done, for as the old people will tell you, ‘you make the children, but not their minds.’ So you can try your best to inculcate God into them from their formative years, and yet they will still go astray. But nonetheless it is still our job, our responsibility, to teach them the things of God, regardless of what they choose to do with that info. The Lord will deal with them for their disobedience, and with us for ours, because too many of us parents have not given the children of this generation enough of God’s fodder. 

Remember what the Lord said of Abraham. ‘For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgement (righteousness and judgement); that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him.’ (Gen. 18:19) 

Oh my people, how many of us can the Lord give such glowing reports of today eh? Unfortunately, not as many as He should, for we have certainly fallen down in raising our children on the tenets of God. However, as the old people would further say, (smile), ‘where there is life, there is hope,’ so let’s not give up on them nuh. Let’s keep being living examples to our children, as well as reminding them of God’s Word and His will for their lives. Much LOVE!

…the foundation of a Christian family is…father, mother, children… and God…                                                                      

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Today’s Scrip-Bit 18 June 2017 Ephesians 6:4.

18 Jun 2017 Leave a comment

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

Ephesians 6:4.    And ye fathers provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture (training) and admonition of the Lord.

HAPPY  FATHER’S  DAY!

Grace and peace be unto all you fathers out there on this Father’s Day Sunday! May the Lord look down upon us with fatherly mercies and blessings that we can share with our families. 

Ah my fellow fathers, this is the day that our society has chosen to honour us, please let us enjoy the day, and let it raise our level of fatherhood as we go through these trying times in our world. True fatherhood has never been more necessary than it is right now, as we are supposed to be the leaders and basic guides of our households. 

So please let’s step up to the plate and do our best so that those who follow us will have superb examples to emulate. That’s the best gift we can ever give; that of being a good role model. Remember, we’ll never be perfect, but we can all be the best we can be. 

Now let’s offer up some thanks and praise to our Mighty Father in heaven, shower Him with the adoration that He so rightly deserves. Let’s acknowledge that even in the deepest and darkest and most tumultuous times of storm, His strong anchor holds us together. So let’s sing one of my favourite Gospel Songs, ‘The Anchor Holds,’ with strong voice and true sacrificial praise. 

‘I have journeyed through the long dark night, Out on the open sea, by faith alone, Sight unknown; and yet his eyes were watching me. (Refrain: The anchor holds, though the ship’s been battered. The anchor holds, Though the sails are torn. I have fallen on my knees as I face the raging seas. But the anchor holds, in spite of the storm.) 

I’ve had visions, I’ve had dreams; I’ve even held them in my hand. But I never knew they would slip right through, Like they were only grains of sand. (Refrain) I have been young but I’m older now. And there has been beauty these eyes have seen. But it was in the night, through the storms of my life, Oh, that’s where God proved His LOVE for me. (Refrain) I have fallen on my knees as I face the raging seas. But the anchor holds in spite of the storm.’ 

Yes friends and fathers, in spite of everything the world throws at us, if we are sheltered under the mighty hand of God, our anchor WILL ALWAYS HOLD! That’s His faithful promise! And we know that our God doesn’t take His promises lightly like we tend to do. 

That brings us to our Bit; most worthy advice from Bruh Paul to the Ephesian fathers way back when, and even more so for these undisciplined and uncontrolled times. ‘And ye fathers provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture (training) and admonition of the Lord.’ 

Ah fathers, we have already allowed this current generation to grow without proper fatherly advice, so that now they are ungodly, lack discipline and figure the world owes them a living. We obviously have not lived up to our wonderful billing, else our youth would not be as disorganized, disenfranchised and disturbed as they are. 

We have done this primarily by our absence from the family home, and even when there, through our neglecting to teach the children what we are supposed to teach them. And it’s not that we didn’t know, because most of us were taught it when we were growing up.  And it’s all based simply on the Lord’s words to His angels about Abraham, before He destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. 

‘For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgement (righteousness and justice); that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of to him. (Gen.18:19) 

Yeh fathers, it’s all about serving the Lord and executing righteousness and justice, as Moses further instructed the Israelites. ‘And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.’ (Deut. 6:6-7) 

Oh fathers, how many of us teach our children about God or talk about the Lord or any kind of godly stuff in our houses these days eh? Not too many. But we teach and talk about all sorts of worldly stuff in our homes and schools, while God is considered a subject of taboo. That’s not right or wise fathers, for in the long run it will bring the wrath of God down on all of us for disobeying His command. 

Now hear these words of Asaph the psalmist. ‘For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which commanded our fathers, that they should make known to their children: That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children. 

That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep the commandments. And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that set not their heart (did not prepare its heart) aright, and whose spirit was not steadfast with God.’ (Ps.78:5-8) 

Unfortunately fathers, that is the kind of generation we have raised. Now what will they teach the next generation about the Lord eh, if they don’t know anything about Him, and thus don’t care about Him? Not a whole lot. And that is exactly why the Lord wants us to teach our children about Him; so that the word can be passed down from generation to generation. How do you think it go to us eh? Because each previous generation taught the one after them. 

And we’ll close with one immortal verse from Cousin Sol. ‘Train up a child in the way he should go: and (even) when he is old, he will not depart from it.’ (Prov.22:6) Yes fathers, once we instill the Lord in the hearts of our children from an early age, even if they stray some, they will always have something solid to fall back on. 

Now, though we have not done our best so far, it’s definitely not too late for us to try and right some of our wrongs. So let’s sincerely ask the Lord to help us do our fatherly duties properly from this time onward. That’s wisdom of enormous proportions! Much LOVE!

…fathers should be people their children can proudly look up to…

 

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 19 June 2016 Ephesians 6:4

19 Jun 2016 Leave a comment

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

Ephesians 6:4. And ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture (training) and admonition of the Lord.

HAPPY  FATHER’S  DAY !

Aye mih fellow fathers, welcome to another Father’s Day! I hope it is a pleasant and happy one for all of us, but knowing the complexities of life, undoubtedly some of us will not enjoy the day. For one reason or another, things will not go the way we want them to, but like so many other unfortunate things in this life, we will just have to ban’ our jaw and accept them. 

Anyway fathers, a lot of what is happening in these sad, trying and difficult times is either directly or indirectly our fault. We have to do a much better job than we’re currently doing. 

There are too many fine women and children out there bearing our genes, who are suffering real ‘sufferation’ because of our foolish, casual, doh care, irresponsible attitudes and behaviour.  We are certainly not fulfilling our mandate to provide for and look after the many children we sire. 

Tell me nuh, how do you think the women and children that we’ve used and abused will get the necessities of life eh – food, shelter, clothing and the knowledge of Jesus Christ, if we don’t help them to do so eh? 

Now there are many good and excellent fathers in the world, but on the other hand, there are way too many bad ones, who are out to simply have a good time and consequently shirk their responsibility that proceeds from that good time. Remember friends that the father is the titular, the spiritual head of the household and as such he is responsible for setting godly parameters and living up to them by his example.  

That’s why our Bit so staunchly declares: ‘And ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture (training) and admonition of the Lord.’ 

Yes friends, the father is supposed to be the guiding light of the household! But if he isn’t around, or around and not doing his duty, then the rest of the family suffers. We have way too many single mothers, whether divorced or never married who are having to raise children by themselves, both as sole parent and provider when there is a father available to help. 

Now listen to how the scholars break down our Bit. ‘6:4. Fathers can provoke their children to wrath by injustice, loss of temper, undue severity, cruelty, favouritism, suppression, sarcasm, ridicule, and misuse or abuse of authority. Nurture basically means “training,” here denoting spiritual education. 

Admonition is instruction that points out one’s responsibilities and duties. Of the Lord is in Greek a subjective genitive. This indicates that behind the parents’ rearing and instruction of their children stands the Lord as the chief teacher in child education. Parents do not raise children alone.’ 

So you see my people, the great demands placed on a father. It’s not an easy job, but with the Lord’s help we can accomplish it. I haven’t been the best father at times, and haven’t always led by example, but my children never wanted for the basic necessities of life, and I tried to instill in them LOVE for the Lord and a sense of responsibility. 

The problem though today, is that sense of responsibility is fading from the entire world, which includes fathers. Now I was raised by a single mother, who worked two jobs from the time I was old enough to know what was happening, so I know the trials and tribulations of those situations. However, although my father and I didn’t see eye to eye, he at least helped with some financial support.  

Many fathers today who can afford it don’t even do that small part of their duty, and the poor women have to take them to court for child support, and even then they don’t pay it.  But when the child or children happen to turn out good and successful, they are the first ones to talk and boast about ‘my children!’ 

Steups! When left to them alone, the children would be eating ‘wind pie and nothing chops.’ Friends, I’ve seen it happen too often, and it sickens me. 

Now here is a li’l something from Cousin Sol re the situation. ‘Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.’ (Prov.22:6)  

And the scholars give us some good info here. ’22:6. Train up a child refers to the total process of moulding a child’s life. The word ‘train’ (chanak) comes from the root word meaning to “put into the mouth” and implies the idea of conditioning the palate. Thus parental training should help children develop a taste for the things of God. The biblical pattern of effective parental training emphasizes a balance of instruction and discipline (cf. Eph.6:1-4). 

The ideal parent is to be neither overly authoritarian nor overly permissive. Rather, he must balance LOVE and discipline so as not to “provoke” his child to rebellion. When he is old means simply, “when he is grown up,” or a mature adult. It does not refer to his elderly years. The verse stresses the simple principle that education in the home forms the man throughout his lifetime.’  

And isn’t that the living truth my people! The home is where our formative years are spent, and there is where we learn the things that make us who we basically are. 

And we’ll close with these words from Psalm 78, where the psalmist Asaph is reminding Israel of God’s goodness. ‘For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children: 

That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born, who should arise and declare them to their children: That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments.’ (Ps.78:5-7) 

Unfortunately fathers, we have not done that very well, consequently our children are not setting their hope in God, but rather in the things of the world, and are totally lost where the commandments are concerned. 

However, where there is life, there is always hope; hope in God. So today on this Sunday, the Lord’s Day, as well as Father’s Day, let’s try an improve the situation nuh, possibly by going to church with our children, that would be the ideal setting for the much needed godly turnaround. Much LOVE!

…fathers…provoke not your children to anger…lest they be discouraged… (Col.3:21)