endure | SCRIP-BITS

Acts 14:22. Confirming (strengthening) the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.

Well hello there you wonderful Friends and faithful believers and followers of Jesus Christ! It’s a new day; a beautiful one, filled with new blessings and mercies, and it’s called Monday…

And I immediately hear the moans and groans and deleted expletives and comments like: ‘Chuh! Yuh really mean is Monday already! Steups! I really have to get up and go to this stupid job!’

Yes Friends, provided you want to earn a living, keep a roof over your family’s head, and bread on the table for your LOVED ones. And I am somewhat disappointed in us my brethren, because it was just last week we woke up with a better perspective, LOVING Mondays and all that it entailed.

Oh, so that’s what it was eh; just a dream, as someone in the penny section cried out. (smile) However Friends, the reality is that it’s Monday, and if you’re a true follower of Jesus, you have to get up and go and labour, whether you want to or not. End of story!

And remember, as Jesus promised, He will always help us to do whatever He desires of us. And His first helping tool today is that we sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn in full, sweet voice. So let’s raise our heads, hearts, eyes and hands heavenward and sing as though there’s no tomorrow.

‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.

We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.

But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.

Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’

Not bad mih people, not bad, though I did hear some hoarse, cackling voices. (smile) Now let’s get ourselves together and hit the ground running for Christ; living up to the words of our Bit! ‘Confirming (strengthening) the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.’

Yes Friends, that’s what all believers are called to do; strengthen the faith of others, encouraging them through faithful words and good examples, because walking in the big footsteps of Jesus is not an easy job, definitely not for the faint of heart or timid of mind.

The unfortunate fate of the believer is to pass through many trials and tribulations, like Jesus did, before we enter God’s heavenly kingdom. But as I keep saying, the rewards for enduring are fantastic, and totally worth it.

Look at what happened to Jesus eh, after He endured His heart-rending tribulation, the Father anointed and exalted Him; ‘and given Him a name to which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow… And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.’ (Phil.2:9-11)

So if the Father did it for Jesus, why wouldn’t He do it for us eh? No reason whatsoever!

Our Bit comes from the section of Acts where Bruh Paul and Barnabas were on a missionary journey, including Lystra, where Bruh Paul was stoned, dragged out of the city and left for dead. (Acts 14:19)

But as the Good Book so famously declares: ‘Howbeit, as the disciples stood round about him, he rose up and came into the city: and the next day he departed with Barnabas to Derbe. And when they had preached the gospel to that city and had taught many (made many disciples), they returned again to Lystra, and to Iconium, and to Antioch.’ (Acts 14:20-21)

Fortunately though my people, most of us won’t have to endure such tribulation. But just being a believer WILL bring us trials. As Jesus said, simply ‘For my name’s sake.’ (Luk2 21:12) But please remember Friends, that true faith, trust in and surrender to Jesus brings us an inner strength that nothing or no one can match or take away.

Just look at our still severely persecuted brethren all over the world. Despite disastrous persecution, they are still standing strong, not giving up. So why can’t we in this fairly free Western society do the same eh? I guess life’s just too easy for us, we take freedom of worship for granted and thus abuse it.

Enough batting of my gums though (smile), time to share this most appropriate scripture from Bruh Paul to Timothy, re being a good soldier in Christ.

‘Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things. Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel: Wherein I suffer trouble, as an evildoer, even unto bonds (chains); but the word of God is not bound (chained).

Therefore I endure all things for the elect’s (chosen ones) sake, that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him: If we suffer (endure), we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us: If we believe not (are faithless), yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.’ (2 Tim.2:7-13)

Oh Friends, please let those words encourage us, let them sink deeply into our consciousness, so that we can develop into good and faithful soldiers of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Why? Because that’s the ultimate wisdom of life! Much LOVE!

…in the world ye shall have tribulation…but be of good cheer…I have overcome the world….’

P.S. Yes Friends, it’s long, but it’s good. (smile) Much LOVE!

Isaiah 49:7. Thus saith the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, and his (its) Holy One, to him whom man despiseth (the despised of soul), to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the Lord that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose (has chosen) thee.

And the cold spell continues in the North Country, my people. One improvement though, it’s supposed to be a little warmer… Sorry, warmer is the wrong word, for there will be no warmth, it will be simply less cold. (smile)

But the great thing about it all is that unless the weather is truly awful, nothing much shuts down, and everyone and everything is expected to go on as normal. It speaks volumes for the determination and hardiness of the people. Anyway, you still have to dress warm and be very careful if you’re venturing out today.

And you people now enjoying brilliant sunshine and warm temps, do enjoy it, but remember to pray for us poor souls up here in the cold, that we’ll successfully make it through this winter that’s wanting to prove what a ferocious lion it is. (smile)

Now here’s an interesting note I found among my papers today. I believe it comes from a lady called Patricia Bragg. It says that ‘Your health is your wealth.’ Now that’s certainly true, because without good health, we can’t enjoy life!

Then there is what’s called the Health Food Mantra. Some of you might have heard it before, but it proclaims that ‘You are what you eat, drink, breathe, think, say and do.’

I believe that what you eat and drink is considered the body’s fuel. So whatever food we put in will determine how it runs; like a purring engine or a clanking, stuttering one.

The same goes for what we breathe. If we breathe in clean, highly oxygenated air, then the body will function at an optimum level. However, these days that kind of air is very difficult to find, especially in the big, industrialized towns and cities.

Then what we think is likened to a computer, and the saying, garbage in, garbage out. So if we don’t think healthy, godly thoughts, then all that will be processed and then come out of our minds is the same garbage we’ve put in, and that will show up through the words we speak and the actions we take.

And with the standards in all those areas sadly falling, as we supposedly get more intelligent and technologically advanced, we have to pay even more attention than before to what we eat, drink, think, say and do.

And the best way to do that my Friends, is by being totally connected to our God, our Creator and our Provider! Wow! What a saving grace for us! For unlike the man-controlled companies, that make us a lot of exorbitant promises, then don’t live up to them, our God, unfailingly lives up to everyone He makes, which proves that He’s ever-faithful, ever-true!

And the biggest promise He’s ever made is forever recorded in our Bit. ‘Thus saith the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, and his (its) Holy One, to him whom man despiseth (the despised of soul), to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the Lord that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose (has chosen) thee.’

Yes Friends, the Lord promised a Saviour, a Redeemer, a Messiah, and faithfully delivered on it through His Son Jesus Christ! So why are we still so sceptical and reluctant to fully embrace Him and live a life that honours Him eh?

It makes no sense my brethren. We’re just selling ourselves short on the wonderful benefits that accrue to those who truly believe and diligently try to serve and worship Him. And it’s not like we can’t read in the Good Book and see in many personal lives around us the excellent results that come from accepting His promises and His faithfulness.

Listen to these scriptures that detail the Lord’s faithfulness. They all come from Bruh Paul’s writings. The first one is to the Corinthians.

‘There hath no temptation taken (befallen, overtaken) you but such as is common to man: but God is FAITHFUL, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear (endure) it.’ (1 Cor.10:13)

Now that doesn’t mean we’ll escape temptation, but more that He will find a way for us to endure it and come out safely on the other side.

Meanwhile, in his second letter to the Thessalonians, Bruh Paul writes: ‘And that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men: for all men have not faith. But the Lord is FAITHFUL, who shall stablish you, and keep you from evil (the evil one).’ (2 Thess.3:2-3)

Yes Friends, we all know about the unfaithfulness of men, that’s why it’s so important to hold on to the faithfulness of Jehovah God.

Then in his first letter to Timothy, Bruh Paul declares: ‘And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with FAITH and LOVE which is in Christ Jesus. This is a FAITHFUL saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.’ (1 Tim.1:14-15)

Bruh Paul considers himself the biggest sinner, and well he might have been in his early days, when he diligently persecuted the church. But through the abundant grace and mercy of Jesus Christ he was forgiven.

Oh Friends, today the same thing is available and possible to anyone who trusts Jesus as their Lord and Saviour! So why don’t you take advantage of it eh, RIGHT NOW?

And we’ll end with some moving verses from Bruh Paul’s second letter to Timothy, re being a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

‘It is a FAITHFUL saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him: If we suffer (endure), we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us: If we believe not (are faithless), yet he abideth FAITHFUL: he cannot deny himself.’ (2 Tim.2:11-13)

Oh my people, those are words of fact, of indisputable truth! So please, let’s write them fast and deep in our consciousness nuh, and then faithfully abide by them as we journey along our pilgrim’s route on this troubled earth. That is the mark of true wisdom! Much LOVE!

…God has proven His faithfulness a million times over…but none as far reaching as sacrificing His only Son Jesus Christ…so that we could be reconciled to Him…what outstanding, all encompassing LOVE and FAITHFULNESS…

SCRIP-BITS

Today’s Scrip-Bit 2 June 2014 Acts 14:22

Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 January 2014 Isaiah 49:7

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