Today’s Scrip-Bit 29 September 2018 John 10:11.

29 Sep 2018 Leave a comment

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

John 10:11. ​I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
 

Ah friends, sorry for the Bit’s lateness, but I went to bed late, got up late, and had a few things to do before I began writing. But the good news is, here I am at last! Glory! Glory! (smile) 

 Oh isn’t it just great to be alive? To be able to laugh and sing, run and jump, (not me… just yet), and even cry once in a while? It surely is, especially when we are living with and working for our wonderful Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ! Oh praise His holy name my faithful brethren; exalt the name that’s above EVERY other name, to whom ALL knees MUST eventually bow! 

Yeh, that’s our Messiah, our Prince of Peace, our heavenly Advocate, Our Burden Bearer, Our Comforter, in fact our Be All and End All, our EVERYTHING! Wow! Are we ever so blessed to have a Leader of such awesome proportions! Let’s give Him the thanks and praise He deserves…and all day long at that! 

Yeh, the ole fella’s in a joyful, exclamatory mood this morning! And why not eh? I just got some most excellent news; news that my heart problems have improved…Glory to God! And I’m now medically fit to travel…Oh mih brethren, that’s the best news ever! 

It’s been almost three years that I’ve been parked up here without the ability to get on an iron bird. But yuh know what, as I keep saying our God is ever so faithful, because many a day I’ve lain in my bed and looked through my window at the iron birds coming and going to and from the nearby airport, wondering when I’d be able to get on one. 

And the Good Lord has always quieted my heart by promising that one day, in the not too distant future, He will lift the medical limitations and free me from this onerous bondage… And now He has done just as He has promised! Bless His holy name! So in light of that extraordinary faithfulness, why wouldn’t I just offer up my whole heart and soul, thanks and praise to Him eh? No reason whatsoever my people! 

But enough of my excitement…let’s get on with the Bit. It’s Saturday, that means we need to look at some of the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week. And we do have a whole slew of then this week, all dealing with change. And we will begin with this one: ‘If you don’t like change, you will like irrelevance even less.’ 

I’m not so sure about that nuh, because the human animal is so eccentric and confusing, and dislikes change so much, that a lot of us will probably prefer to be irrelevant rather than to change. That leads us to this quote: ‘The price of doing the same old thing is far higher than the price of change.’ 

Now that I definitely disagree with! In my many years and much trial and testing on God’s earth, I’ve usually found that the price of change is usually much higher than the price of standing stationary. In particular the effort that one has to put out to make whatever change is necessary. That’s why so many people just stay the same way in the same place. 

That’s why this next quote is the living truth! ‘Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts.’ Now that’s exactly why so many of us resist change, even change that’s obviously in our best interest! Change just doesn’t come easy. And this one mirrors the truth of the last. ‘The world hates change, yet it is the only thing that has brought progress.’ And so it has my brethren… though not always for the better! 

That brings us to the last quote: ‘I cannot say whether things will get better if we change; what I can say is they must change if they are to get better.’ And isn’t that that the undeniable truth people? Unless our world changes, and drastically too, and also towards Jesus, until we stop trying to drive God out of our society and instead, embrace Him with all our hearts, souls, bodies and minds, our world will just continue sinking inexorably, relentlessly into the muck and mire of Lucifer’s evil empire. 

And that is not what our Saviour came to earth and suffered so much for. That’s definitely not why He suffered such pain and humiliation and eventually gave up His sinless life on that wooden cross at Calvary. If He wanted us to become part and parcel of Lucifer’s evil empire, He would have just remained in His cozy corner in heaven enjoying all the exotic delights provided by His Father. But He sacrificially gave all of that up to come and save our sinful souls. 

Remember friends, Lucifer is the master of thievery, lies and deception, an evil genius in leading mankind astray. Just look at how he deceived Eve in the Garden of Eden, and he’s still doing it to us to this day. However Jesus declared, and proved it too: ‘The thief cometh not, but (except) for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.’ (John 10:10-11) 

And there is absolutely no doubt that that’s what Jesus did on the cross at Calvary; give His sinless, holy life on behalf of our abominable sinful souls, so that the Father could justifiably forgive us and reconcile us to Himself. So why are we still foolishly running behind Lucifer and his evil, lustful, carnal, ungodly way of life eh? A way of life that will only lead to eternal separation from our heavenly Father; the worst fate that can ever befall a human soul! 

I don’t know the answer to that nuh friends, but I am surely trying my best to stay away from that end result…and I sincerely hope that you are trying to do the same, because that’s the ultimate in wisdom! Much LOVE!

…as for me and mine…we will definitely follow Jesus…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 2 June 2013 Philippians 2:8.

02 Jun 2013 Leave a comment

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

Philippians 2:8.      And being found in fashion (appearance) as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
 
Oh Friends, oh Friends, recently the bruised, battered and broken image of Jesus being led like an innocent lamb to the slaughter, has been appearing rather frequently on my mental screen. I don’t know why, but guess that I’m finally coming to a somewhat fuller realization of the awesome price He paid to save my sinful soul from eternal death and damnation.
 
And everyday I have to chuckle at the mysterious, innovative, unique and eccentric ways that God operates in my life. This last image appearance happened about four days ago, as I was sitting on the deck at the back of my house around twilight, sipping some caffeine, just enjoying the cooler evening weather, for the day had turned out beautifully, hot and sunny, at definite odds to the earlier forecast of rain.
 
Anyway, as I sat there listening to some birds chirp their evening praise, the words of one of my old favourite hymns suddenly drifted in to my mind. I’m talking about:  ‘When I survey the wondrous cross on which the Prince of Glory Died.’
 
Unfortunately I didn’t remember all the words, so I had to look them up, and then was guided to share them here with you. It was written by Isaac Watts in 1707, and is based on Gal.6:14.
 
‘When I survey the wondrous cross, On which the Prince of glory died, My richest gain I count but loss, And pour contempt on all my pride. Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast, Save in the death of Christ my God!
 
All the vain things that charm me most, I sacrifice them to His blood. See from His head, His hands, His feet, Sorrow and LOVE flow mingled down!
 
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet, Or thorns compose so rich a crown? Were the whole realm of nature mine, That were a present far too small; LOVE so amazing, so divine, Demands my soul, my life, my all.’
 
Oh my fellow believers, what powerful, soul-searching words!
 
And then the true picture came into focus. You know when we see pictures of Jesus hanging on the cross, it’s always a frontal view – and that’s really a blessing in disguise, for can you imagine what a bloody mess His back must have been, from all the flogging etc. Many of us would most likely faint at the gruesome sight.
 
All of that just led me to think what a bunch of super ingrates we are. We talk a whole lot about Jesus, talk up a storm, but when the time comes for us to brave that storm, to walk through it, hn… we shudder with a sad mixture of fear and shame and step back into a harbour of safe shelter.
 
Oh my brethren, the returns we’re paying Jesus on His selfless sacrifice are woefully inadequate. Granted, we can never repay Him in full, but what we’re currently paying, through the less than stellar lives we’re living, is totally insufficient.
 
In terms of interest rates, since we can’t ever pay the principal, we’re paying even less than what the crooked, criminal banks are paying, and they have now been at their lowest point for quite some time.
 
Come on my people, We can surely raise our interest rates, do a better job of living for Jesus, of LOVING Him, of LIVING our Faith in true Christian fashion, not as hypocritically as we’re currently doing, and SPREADING His Word with much more confidence and passion and much less fear and shame.
 
Please note the sad but stoic tenor of our Bit: ‘And being found in fashion (appearance) as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.’
 
Ah mih people, after all that Jesus suffered on our behalf, we can most assuredly up the ante, little by little, until we come to a decent rate. Now that’s my admonition for today! And I pray that we’ll all take it seriously and try our best to improve our standing with Jesus.
 
And if we’re truthful with ourselves, we’ll all admit that we can do a better job of living for Him. For remember my brethren, that He is the ONLY ONE who can truly help us in this mish-mash life, in these rough, hard, scary and troubled times.
 
Man can’t help us, seeing that he can’t even help himself. As the psalmist so wisely advises us: ‘It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man.’ (Ps.118:8) 
 
So Friends, I’m imploring us to not forget that Jesus died to help us, to bring us out of bondage to sin, that’s the ONLY reason He sacrificed His sinless life!
 
Therefore, with songs of praise and joyful countenances, let’s board the train that leads to wherever He is! Let’s get passionate about our faith, knowing that at some stage of the game, we’ll go home to be with Him forever!
 
But until then, let’s do our best to honour and glorify Him down here on earth, for He is truly worthy of much honour and glory! Much LOVE!
 
…Jesus, Jesus…oh how I LOVE that name…Jesus, Jesus…I’ll shout it out loud…without any shame…
 
 
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 28 November 2012 Ephesians 5:14

28 Nov 2012 Leave a comment

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

 

Ephesians 5:14.    Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.
Oh Friends, oh Friends, another beautiful day is unfurling in Paradise! (smile) I hope the weather forecasters are wrong about the next couple days though, because they predict some more rain. Ah chuh! Yesterday wasn’t so beautiful at all, with a kind of intermittent rain falling all day; hard for a little while, then tapering off to a drizzle, then stopping, with even the sun coming out bright and hot, fooling you into thinking that it was finally over. But that was very deceptive, just like Beelzebub and his worldly lusts, for lo and behold, without any warning, it would suddenly pour down again. And if it was cooling the land, it wouldn’t be too bad, however it only increased the humidity, making you feel sweaty and miserable. I’ll take that any day though over the cold and snow. Now we won’t even go there, because next week this time, I’ll be fighting up with the cold weather back in the North County, longing for the hot, rainy, sunny days of sweet Tobago. Anyway, yesterday I went to into the metropolis of Scarborough to meet my old school buddy, James Joel Telemaque Phillip Prince Albert Jack. Hn,hn! That’s certainly a mouthful, but I believe it’s only the first two are his real names. I’ve heard that though from since ABC (Kindergarten), some sixty years ago, so that now it’s just ingrained into my consciousness. And I have to laugh, because from day one Telemaque was eccentric, and now in his golden years, he’s become even more so. But he’s still bright and endearing. I also visited some other school chums out in the posh Bacolet area. Actually spent most of the afternoon there, safely ensconced in middle class luxury during the rainy spells. Now don’t get me wrong, my friends might live good, but they worked hard for what they have, and are true, down to earth believers. Their house had to be big too, in order to safely comfort their six children. So I am just being foolish, to tease them when they read it. Then, by the time I got home, after 7 p.m, another couple arrived to take us out to dinner. So it was indeed a busy day. Good thing I got in my dip in Store Bay before I went out. Enough though about my  inconsequential activities, time to visit our Bit, which is the same as yesterday, because it’s a rather important topic, exhorting believers to really wake up and do the things we’re supposed to do, not simply talk about them, then go and do the worldly things that totally contradict them. ‘Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.’ Ah mih people, it’s mind boggling that we’re labouring in such dreary darkness these days, when we should be enjoying the wonderful light of Jesus, that  He sacrificed His sinless life for us to have, and which we talk so much about. Unfortunately, too many Christians are only mouthing the tenets of our faith, but are really practicing the ways of the world; seeking personal fame, power and glory, along with money and material possessions. Now those things are important to a certain extent, but they’re not be worshipped, to be idolized, as we’re currently doing. Remember Jesus purposely advised us: ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt.6:33) And if you truly believe in Jesus, then you’ll do as He says. Too many of us though claim to believe, but are not truly living by faith as we should, and instead are foolishly running down the things of the world, causing ourselves untold stress and trouble, when we could be enjoying the peace of Christ that Jesus promises, and surely delivers, when we keep Him FIRST in our lives. That brings us back to Bruh Paul’s warning to the Ephesians, continuing from where we left off yesterday. ‘Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.’ (Eph.5:17) Yes my brethren, since these days are so evil, believers have to show consummate wisdom at all times, truly desiring to know the Lord’s will, and not being led down the garden path by the forces of iniquity, that are constantly trying to get us off God’s straight and narrow way. Now here’s another bit of enlightening and encouraging scripture on the topic from the prophet Malachi. ‘But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness (Messiah) arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall (grow fat like stall-fed calves).’ (Mal.4:2) Oh Friends, that’s another prophecy that was also fulfilled by Jesus’ coming, so how can we not believe and have faith in the Good Book and its guiding light, its true path to salvation eh? Anyway, we’ll end with some ways that Bruh Paul advised the Ephesians to conduct their lives, so that they could stay on the straight and narrow path that leads to salvation and eternal life. ‘And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess (dissipation); but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.’ (Eph.5:18-21) Oh my people, that’s invaluable advice which all believers should follow, if we truly desire to be of service to our most wonderful, LOVING, kind, generous, merciful and forgiving God! Please, pretty please mih bredden, let’s try and put those things into our lives nuh, starting today, RIGHT NOW, so that we can be all numbered amongst the truly righteous and faithful of the earth. That is wisdom at its zenith! Much LOVE!…if we truly want to experience the great rewards and benefits of salvation…it’s time we wake up…and take our God seriously…both in words and deeds…