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Today’s Scrip-Bit 7 February 2014 Isaiah 9:16

07 Feb 2014 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: appropriate scripture, Babylon, bad choices, blind lead the blind, burned with fire, cause them to err, consequeneces, consider, contemptible, corruption, covenant, critical position, death, decision making, destroyed, disasters, disobedience, disregard, enormous ramifications, equal rights, evil cohorts, evil path, famine, fellowship, Friday chant, friends, frivolity, fun, further your glorious kingdom, gay abandon, generous help, glorious kingdom, go with the flow, God's Law, God's principles, God's Word, gospel truth, greed, heartfelt rendition, heartrending, heavenly wisdom, hedonistic, hold my head and bawl, holiness, holy spirit, horrific price, in Jesus' name, ineptitude, insightful words, Isaiah, Israel, Jesus Christ, joy of the lord, justice, knowledge, Leaders, leading people astray, led of them, life, LOVE, Lucifer, man-made idols, messenger of God, mourning, natural laws, no place like Home, one day, one true God, partiality, peace, plagues, pleasure driven lifestyle, ponder, poor decisons, prophecies, proven fact, rat-race, refreshed in soul body and mind, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, repent, rest, retribution, Revelation, right perspective, righteousness., routine, rude awakening, seek the Lord, strong is the Lord, stumble, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, the head and tail, the Lord's anger, the priest's lips, the prophet Isaiah, think on, truth, turn back to God, understanding, ungodly society, virtual reality, warnings, welcome back, wisdom

Isaiah 9:16. For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed.

‘Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back!’ Oh Friends, the snow and cold gave me a very warm welcome back last night. Wow! But in spite of the rude awakening, it’s good to be back, because there’s just no place like home!

And like I’ve fallen right back into the early morning routine. Chuh! How nice it was the past three weeks not to have a set routine and just go with the flow of life. But that was the virtual reality, the frivolity of the situation, this is the real reality, and the two are definitely much different.

So as most workers rejoice with shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday! Payday and time to party!’ let’s get the right perspective on the situation right away, with a soulful, heartfelt rendition of our Friday Chant.

As one chanter now. (smile) ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.

Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’

Yes my people, the wise and sensible thing to do on the weekend is to make sure you get enough rest, relaxation and fellowship with other believers, so that come Monday you’ll get out there bright, spunky and full of the joy of the Lord! That’s the only way we can successfully handle this rat race we so nicely term life.

That my Friends, brings us to today’s Bit; a very interesting and rather appropriate verse of scripture, which has enormous ramifications for our present society and way of life. ‘For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed.’

And that’s gospel truth my people! This is the prophet Isaiah declaring the Lord’s anger against the Northern kingdom of Israel, for their overwhelming disobedience and turning away from Him to worship other supposed gods and man-made idols. But my fellow believers, we know that there is ONLY ONE TRUE GOD IN EXISTENCE, He of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob!

And you don’t have to look very far or dig very deep to see the gross ineptitude, corruption, greed, poor choices and decision making of today’s leaders.

But listen to what Isaiah says before our Bit. ‘For the people turneth not unto him that smiteth (strikes) them, neither do they seek the Lord of hosts.’ (Is.9:13)

That my Friends is so relevant to our current society, that it’s heart rending. A substantial part of our society has turned away from the ONE TRUE GOD, and refuses to repent and turn back to Him, despite the many warnings found in His Word, and the many unusual and severe disasters that are happening on a more frequent basis than that to which we are accustomed.

So what do you think will the consequences of this disobedience eh? ‘Isaiah details it: ‘Therefore the Lord will cut off from Israel head and tail, branch (palm branch) and rush (bulrush), in one day.’ (Is.9:14)

And if you don’t believe Isaiah, then listen to what Revelation says about the eventual fall of Babylon, the evil, ungodly society in which we’re presently living. ‘Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord who judgeth her.’ (Rev.18:8)

And we’ve seen all Gods’ prophecies come true, so why not that one eh? Yes my brethren, the Lord will eventually destroy our society, like He’s done to so many others before us, who proudly and foolishly refused to accept His warnings.

Then Isaiah further explains: ‘The ancient and honourable (elder) he is the head; and the prophet that teaches lies, he is the tail.’ (Is.9:15)

For as the prophet Malachi said way back when, and still applies today: ‘For the priest’s lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at his mouth: for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts. But ye are departed out of the way; ye have caused many to stumble at the law; ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi, saith the Lord of hosts.

Therefore have I also made you contemptible and base before all the people, according as ye have not kept my ways, but have been partial (shown partiality) in the law.’ (Mal.2:7-9)

Again Friends and fellow believers, that is gospel truth, for the priesthood nowadays is definitely not up to the level or standard of righteousness and holiness that it ought to be, people no longer look up to them as they used to, and unfortunately they are leading a lot of people astray!

Ah Lord eh! Some of the things I see and hear about, regarding our leaders and priests, it just makes me want to hold my head and bawl!

Oh my brethren, it truly amazes me, that with so many societies, shown by history to have bitten the dust because of blatant disobedience to God’s holy law, we, supposedly the wisest and most knowledgeable of all humans, are still pursuing, unabashed and unashamed, in fact with total disregard and gay abandon, to flout the natural laws of justice, peace, LOVE and equal rights!

Now that’s a Bruh Paulian sentence! (smile) But it’s irrefutable truth!

Oh Friends, we desperately need a change of mind and heart, one filled with crucial but true understanding of God’s principles, so that we can turn back to Him, repent and diffuse His holy and just anger against us. And unless you are really foolish, you’ll realize that God is indeed very angry with us for our evil, hedonistic, material and pleasure driven lifestyle.

Oh my people, I don’t know what else to say to get us to understand the critical position we’re currently in nuh. We’re behaving just like Israel did long ago, not heeding God’s warnings. And they paid a horrific price for their disobedience. And the same will eventually happen to us, if we keep going down the evil path we’re being led down by Lucifer and his evil cohorts, many of them our elders, teachers and prophets.

And we’ll end with some interesting, but oh so true words of Jesus on the topic. ‘And he spake a parable unto them, Can the blind lead the blind? shall they not both fall into the ditch?’ (Luke 6:39)

Oh Friends, please, let’s ponder, seriously think on and consider those very insightful words of our Lord, Saviour and Leader, Jesus Christ. Then with God’s help, let’s try to make any necessary corrections in our own lives. Now that’s undoubtedly heavenly wisdom! Much LOVE!

…disobedience to God’s holy law…will always bring painful retribution…and that’s a proven fact throughout history…

P.S. Please excuse the lateness Friends, for although I got up fairly early, I had lot of other important stuff to first rectify, and then a sudden bout of tiredness hit me and slowed me down. But it’s still an excellent Bit. (smile) Much LOVE!

Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 January 2014 Romans 13:12

24 Jan 2014 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: advice, armour of light, backache, carnival celebrations, cell phone, drama, drunkenness, envy, faithful, fellowship, food stall, food stalls, Friday chant, fun, generous help, glasses, glorious kingdom, how high, jesus name, jump, lewdness, licentiousness, long and short of the story, long lost friend, LOVE, lusts of the flesh, Master Dramatist, North country, plastic shopping bag, rest and relaxation, revelry, right perspective, Security Office, slept in, soca, spirit, Store Bay, strife, tests, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, the works of darkness, walk honestly, wantonness, week of work, wisdom, Wonderful

Romans 13:12. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.

Oh Friends, oh Friends, is Friday… And all the working people joyfully shout out: ‘TGIF! Thank the Lord is Friday yes! TGIF! Thank the Lord is Friday, time to party!’ Yeh Friends, the twin island Republic of T&T is hopping, as the pre-carnival celebrations build up, and the tension rises in expectations of a great carnival! Is pure soca, or what passes for soca these days, yuh hearing on the radio, plus all the ads for the big fetes and them in town.

But lemme tell all yuh about my personal drama, that the Master Dramatist put down on me. Hn! Hn! Ah have to laugh yes mih people, because we God is truly something else yes!

The story goes like this: Yesterday afternoon I went down to Store Bay to have my daily testimonial. I didn’t stay as long as the day before because the Duchess wasn’t bathing. So after I had my quick dip, I met her by the food stalls. We bought food and then left for home. On the way home, we stopped at the business place of one of her long lost Tobagonian friends, whom a lady had just told her about. We sat and chatted with her for a while then came home.

Ordinarily, I’ve been wearing my glasses hanging from my neck by its string, but sometimes when I’m driving, it gets hooked up in my seatbelt and makes the driving uncomfortable. So yesterday, after changing, I put it in a plastic shopping bag, along with my bath trunks, a comb and some dirty underwear. But then, in all the excitement of the evening, surprisingly I never needed my glasses until around six thirty.

Lo and behold though, when I went looking for them, they were nowhere to be found. Then I realized that my bag with the trunks was also missing. A hurried trip back to Store Bay, around 7 p.m. proved fruitless, for all the food stalls were already closed. So I had no option but to resign myself to wait until morning to retrieve them. I tried using the Duchess’ glasses, but they didn’t work well unless the writing was fairly large.

So I slept in this morning, since I couldn’t read or write, though I woke up with a backache. Can’t even get in a good night’s sleep without waking up with problems. (smile) But eight o’clock found me down at Store Bay enquiring about my bag. Now I had been under the impression that I had left it at a food stall. However, none of the food stalls had it. On further enquiry though, I discovered that two people had seen it on the steps leading up to a restaurant that a friend was renovating.

Then I remembered calling out to him the afternoon before, putting down the bag on the step and heading up the stairs to check him out. Halfway up though, his working partner had come out and told me that Greville, my friend, had already come and gone. I can only guess that after that, in my whatever you want to call it state, (smile) I came back down the steps and left the bag sitting there.

The long and short of the story though is that then ensued some talk about where the bag could have disappeared to, for two people claimed they saw the bag there when they left the compound in the late afternoon, but the morning cleaners hadn’t seen it when they came in.

Oh Friends, the people down at Store Bay were ever so helpful. I could not have asked for better cooperation. Finally, after everybody had checked where they could and called whom they could, it was decided that it could either be in the garbage, or the Security Office. However, the Security office didn’t open until ten o’clock, and it was then only minutes to nine. So I bought a big glass of Mauby, got out my novel, which I could read with the wife’s glasses and sat down on a bench overlooking the beach.

And then the drama heated up even further. I took out my cell phone to call the Duchess and advise her of the situation. But yuh better believe mih breddren, the cell phone was dead as a doornail! Mama yo! All I could do was laugh, for my cell phone never dies on me in the North Country, but that’s because I hardly use it up there, so it’s usually turned off. But down here it’s on all the time. And it was even funnier since I’d recently been giving some others a hard time about dead cell phones.

Who says the Lord doesn’t get you back one way or the other eh? So I read until about ten, then went to see if the Security people had come in as yet. But no luck. So I continued hanging around, until at minutes to eleven, the security lady casually sauntered in, calling out her morning greetings as she went.

Finally, we went to her office and she looked around, but couldn’t find anything. However, just as I was telling her thanks for her time, and walking away, having resigned myself to the loss of my glasses, for that was the only item that truly mattered, she called out, ‘Is this it?’

When I looked around, she had two plastic bags in her hand. Apparently she had found them in a cupboard under the counter. I was overjoyed and thanked her profusely.

Then the Spirit wisely prodded me: ‘Well since you’re here, you might as well take a dip. Remember you have to go to Harry’s birthday do later.’ (smile) And being the obedient fellow that I am, I followed the Spirit’s wise advice and had a dip, which means I didn’t get back home until around noon. Then I had to have breakfast; Miss Rosie’s carrot and coconut bake and saltfish, washed down with some of Miss Sylvia’s Mauby.

Ah Friends, yuh think it easy? (smile) Not at all nuh! But our God is so wonderful and faithful, that even though He had me jumping through hoops, He still sent people to help me jump through them successfully! Now which other of the many supposed deities does that eh? NONE! Because there’s only one real and true Deity, Jehovah God! And that’s why the Bit is so late. That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.

So let’s go home now, chanting our Friday Chant: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’

Oh Friends, that’s the perspective we need to adopt for the weekend, especially in these evil times when Beelzebub has upped his zeal and concentration in trolling for suspects.

For as our Bit so wisely reminds us: ‘The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk honestly, (properly), as in the day; not in rioting (revelry) and drunkenness, not in chambering (licentiousness) and wantonness (lewdness), not in strife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.’ (Rom.13:12-14)

Oh my people, we can’t ask or expect better advice than that! So please let’s take it and continue to deal faithfully with our God. For that’s wisdom at its zenith! Much LOVE!

…when our God tests us…when He says jump…the correct response is…how high Lord…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 23 January 2014 Romans 13:12

23 Jan 2014 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: accord, agreement, all things become new, any man be in Christ, backsliding, behaviour, Belial, Bruh Paul, cast off, Christ, Church of Christ, cloister, communion, consciousness, dark clouds, darkness, day of Christ's return, dough, down the wrong path, drawing closer, dreams, drowning, dry season, earthly pilgrimage, enemies, evil doer, evil powers of darkness, fall, Father, fellowship, feud, fighting diligently and faithfully, flesh is weak, friends, fruit of the Spirit, furthering God's glorious kingdom, glorious day, glory, godly behaviour, good effect, gospel truth, heavenly blessing, idols, immoral, immortal words, in the world, influence, intentions, joyous, keep the feast, lawlessness, leaven, light, living God, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, Lowlands, lush greenery, lusts, malice, material concerns, new creation, new man, not a part, old things, one bad apple, parched land, Passover, perishable world, personal experience, pineapple chow, pomp, purge, put on the armour of light, rain, righteousness., root out, sacrifice, seep in, separation from unbelievers, sin, sincerity, sinful flesh, soaking up the sea and sun, sons and daughters, spoil, Store Bay, stranglehold, temple of God, the day is at hand, the evil situation, the night's almost over, the sun rising, the works of darkness, transforming light of Jesus, truth, unclean thing, ungodly doings, ungodly hordes, unrighteous people, unrighteousness, victorious, weather forecast, wicked, wickedness, won the battle, yeast, yoked

Romans 13:12. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.

Aye mih people, how goes it this beautiful Thursday morning? I hope it goes well with all of you. Personally, I can’t complain, for if I do the Lord will strike me down.

It’s now been a week since I arrived in Paradise, and I’m having a great ole time. Had a wonderful couple of hours at Store Bay yesterday afternoon, soaking up the sea, sun and sand and eating pineapple chow for the first time- nice and peppery.

Oh brother! If only I could have about six continuous months of this lifestyle, I’d certainly be a new man! (smile) No harm in dreaming Friends, for that’s what dreams are made for.

But right now I’m standing on the balcony of my little bungalow at Lowlands, where the day is just breaking, overlooking the pool downstairs, gazing at the lush greenery all around me, and some dark clouds fighting for survival. However unfortunately, behind the big trees in the foreground, the sun seems to be rising in all its splendour, as the white clouds above the trees sparkle and shine.

But what amuses me is that I just saw Tobago’s weather forecast for today on the computer, and it’s calling for temps of 30 degrees, with oodles of rain, not even one pin prick of sunshine shows up in it. Let’s wait and see, though it would be nice to get some heavenly blessing in what’s termed the dry season down here, to nurture the now dry and parched land.

Ah Friends, half an hour later, the sun has won the battle! Just as the transforming light of Jesus will win the feud over the evil powers of darkness, when He returns in all his pomp and regal glory! What a joyous and glorious day that will be my brethren!

And as our Bit says: ‘The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.’

Yes my people, that awesome day of Christ’s glorious return is drawing closer with each passing day! That means the evil powers of darkness ought to be subsiding, but unfortunately its getting stronger, because we believers are not fighting diligently and faithfully enough.

Oftimes we’re even helping the evil situation by joining with the ungodly hordes, drowning ourselves in the material concerns of this perishable world and the lusts of our sinful flesh. So how then my people, is the church of Christ to come out victorious, if we are joining with and supporting His enemies?

Please remember Friends, that we’re only supposed to be IN the world, not A PART of it. Remember too these immortal words of Bruh Paul to the Corinthians. ‘Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (creation): old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.’ (2 Cor.5:17)

And following on from that most important and decisive verse, come these words from Bruh Paul, as he pleads for separation from unbelievers. ‘Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship (in common) hath righteousness with unrighteousness (lawlessness)? and what communion (fellowship) hath light with darkness?

And what concord (accord) hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel (unbeliever)? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.’ (2 Cor.6:14-18)

Yes Friends, believers ought not to adopt or allow the ways of unbelievers to seep in their consciousness and thus their behaviour. When we associate with unbelievers, as we must do in a predominantly unbelieving world, we need to ensure that it is our godly behaviour that shines out and controls the situation, so that we can influence them, rather than they influence us.

And the best way to avoid the latter situation happening, is to stay away from wicked, immoral, unrighteous people and their activities. Now that doesn’t mean locking ourselves up in a cloister, but throughout our earthly pilgrimage we will encounter persons and situations that are obviously not going to provide good fruit of the Spirit.

These we ought to say away from, for though we might have the best intentions in the world, our flesh is weak, and we are not always able to handle ungodly people and their ungodly doings.

For as Bruh Paul warned the Corinthians in his first letter. ‘Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump (a little yeast, spreads through all the dough)? Purge (clean) out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.

Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. (1 Cor.5:6-9)

Yes my brothers and sisters, even a little sin can spoil the whole soul! As we say, one bad apple can spoil the whole basket. And that’s gospel truth, as many of us have discovered from personal experience. Thus it is that one persistent sin or evil doer in our lives can cause us to fall.

So let’s therefore try and root out any known sin that has a stranglehold on us, or anyone who we associate with who’s leading us down the wrong path. And furthermore, let’s be very careful with what and whom we associate, and in whatever company we find ourselves, always endeavour to have our godly behaviour influence the gathering.

In that way, we will prevent ourselves from backsliding, and possibly have a good effect on others, leading them to accept Christ as their Lord and Saviour, thus furthering the righteous and glorious kingdom of our great, wonderful and marvellous God. Much LOVE!

…there’s no influence as strong and pervasive as that of other humans…so believers must be very careful of whom they allow to influence them…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 10 January 2014 Romans 13:10

10 Jan 2014 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a life of Love, agape, anger, Beelzebub, bounden duty, careening, Christ's followers, commandments, culture, devilish path, diligent efforts of Love, dissipation, dominating, earthly pilgrimage, eternal darkness, eternity, evil powers, fellowship, first heartbeat, foolish pride, forgive, Friday chant, fulfilling of the law, fun, generous help, glorious kingdom, godlessness, godly sentiments, godly wisdom, gospel truth, greatest feelings, human weakness, importance of Love, Jesus Christ, jesus name, Job, lawlessness, leggo-beast, life-saving opportunity, LOVE, Love does no harm, Love God, Love shines brighter, Love shines brighter every day, Love your neighbour as yourself, lower standards, negative and evil things, party time, perspective, Pharisees, positive and godly things, rebellion, reconciled to God, reggase song, rejuvenation of spirit, renewal, revolution of Love, right perspective, separation, sinful nature, spread LOVE, strife, Thank God is Friday, the children's sake, the essence of God, the morning sun, the necessity for Love, the weekend, too far for comfort, unbelievers, unfathomable reason, unwise, wisdom

Romans 13:10. LOVE worketh no ill (does no harm) to his neighbour: therefore LOVE is the fulfilling of the law.

Hello there mih people, it’s Friday… And the raucous shouting begins: ‘Oh Lord, oh Lord, the weekend’s here! Work soon finish, then is time to behave like leggo beast! Oh Lord, oh Lord, it’s Friday… party time! Thank the Lord is Friday yes!’ (smile)

But Friends, you better believe that there are a lot of us out there with that mentality, that the weekend’s the time to go crazy. However, that’s a sad fallacy.

Granted, you do deserve to let down your hair some, after a long and hard week’s work, but definitely not to behave like leggo beast and put a big, broad grin on Beelzebub’s evil face. It’s supposed to be more a time of renewal than dissipation.

And to help us use the weekend the right way, let’s chant our Friday Chant as one loud, harmonious, groovy chorus. ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.

Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’

Now that’s how we should approach the weekend my brethren, not with the earlier carryings on! It’s all about perspective people; about having the right perspective to this earthly pilgrimage.

And what better perspective to life is there than the godly sentiments contained in our Bit? ‘LOVE worketh no ill (does no harm) to his neighbour: therefore LOVE is the fulfilling of the law.’ None whatsoever!

Oh my fellow believers, we’re talking about LOVE, the essence of the omnipotent God Jehovah, Creator and Controller of the universe!

LOVE was the emotion that drove Him to save us from our sinful selves, thus giving us the wonderful, life-saving opportunity to be reconciled to Him, and not spend eternity in eternal darkness and separation.

In light of all that, what could be a better perspective to living, than a life of LOVE eh? Nothing really my brethren!

As the old reggae song by Culture states: ‘It was LOVE that caused our first heartbeat.’ Gospel truth indeed!

And Culture also declares that ‘LOVE shines brighter than the morning sun.’ And it sure does Friends, if we allow it to.

That’s why Jesus kept reiterating the importance of and the necessity for LOVE in our lives. When asked by the ole hypocrite Pharisees about the greatest commandment, what was His reply eh?

‘Thou shalt LOVE the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt LOVE thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.’ (Matt.22:37-40)

Now why would Jesus expand and expatiate (smile) on the importance of LOVE, if it wasn’t a big deal eh?

But for some unfathomable reason, be it foolish pride, persistent rebellion, or our basic sinful nature, we seem to find it very difficult to LOVE; to show it, to put it into action. And that deficiency covers the whole spectrum; from God, right back to ourselves and our neighbours.

However my brethren, without that ‘agape’ LOVE, the spiritual kindness, consideration and decency towards, God, ourselves and each other, our world will only keep sinking into a dreary and murky mire of lawlessness, Godlessness, anger and strife.

In fact, we’ve already gone too far for comfort, down that unwise, devilish path. And the only thing that can bring us back is a serious revolution of LOVE, engendered by Christ’s followers!

Yes my fellow believers, it’s only through our combined and diligent efforts of LOVE that our world will ever be turned around!

Aren’t you tired of seeing our beautiful world constantly careening to lower and lower levels and standards, where the negative and evil things in life are dominating the positive and godly things? I surely am!

So please help me fix it nuh! It’s our job, our bounden duty! And if we don’t fix it, who will eh? Surely not the unbelievers and evil powers that be!

So Friends, in Jesus’ Name, today I’m asking us to all come together, as ONE, as the church, the body of Christ, and spread LOVE all around the world! Because as Culture also says: ‘LOVE shines brighter every day.’ That’s provided we allow it to.

So if we truly LOVE Jesus, then let’s allow the LOVE that’s buried deep in our hearts and souls to shine brighter today, and each and every day hence; for our world, and our children’s sake That’s godly wisdom! Much LOVE!

…oh, to LOVE…and be LOVED…are the greatest feelings in the world…

P.S. Sorry the Bit’s a tad late, but the ole body just couldn’t get up very early this morning. Please show some LOVE, and forgive my human weakness. (smile) Much LOVE!

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

07 Jan 2014 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: almighty god, amusing story, believers in Jesus, big chill, big freeze, blessed, blowing snow, come to repentance, confession, Cousin Sol, covenant, deliverer, despised of soul, disintegrate, dress warmly, ever-LOVING God, faith, faithful, faithful God, faithful is He that calls you, faithfulness, faithfulness to God, families, father in heaven, fellowship, forgiving, gospel truth, grin and bear it, hallmark of God, harassed, hope, howling winds, immortal truth, in Jesus' name, inclement weather, Isaiah, Israel, Jesus Christ, judgement, kings shall see, land, litmus test, long-suffering, LOVE, merciful, North America, North country, perish, persecuted, princes shall worship, proclamation, promise, prophesied, proud, query, record freezing temps, Redeemer of Israel, relationship, righteous, servants of rulers, slackness, societies, stand in true faithfulness, steadfast and strong, stranglehold, talk, testimonies, thank you, the Boss, the Holy One of Israel, the Lord, two way street, upright, walk, wasps, win-win situation, winter, wisdom for all time

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.

Oh Friends, welcome to the Big Freeze, the Big Chill, for the winter weather seems to have most of North America in a stranglehold! What with record freezing temps, howling winds, creating blowing snow, whiteouts, accidents, more ice storms and what else have you!

The high in my area today is supposed to be minus 15 Celsius. Hn! And that’s good, some other places will be worse than that. But it’s winter, and we’re in the North Country, so we just have to grin and bear it. (smile) However, if you’re going out today, please dress as warmly as you can; coat, hats, gloves, scarves, boots, etc. etc.

But here’s an interesting and amusing story I’ve been meaning to tell along, but keep forgetting. During the summer a wasp (jack spaniard) nest appeared on a branch on a maple tree outside my kitchen window, it hung very close to the sidewalk, so there was some consternation from passersby.

My wife was delegated to look after it, because she’s the horticulturist in the family. I never heard anything more about the situation, so I forgot about it. But lo and behold, a few days ago, I looked out the window and there was said jack spaniard nest still hanging quite comfortably on the end of a tree branch half the width of a noodle.

I had to laugh, because during all the snow, wind and ice storms, it remained steadfast and strong. Other bigger and supposedly stronger branches than that broke off the tree, but not the one with the nest. It’s still standing there, dark grey and proud.

I wondered if the wasps were still in it. But my wife told me that the nest had been sprayed. So why didn’t they take down the nest then, I asked? It was suppose to disintegrate, was the answer I received. Disintegrate my eye! I checked it out just now, and as I said before, it’s still standing out there, with some snow at the top, but otherwise, dark grey and proud!

And Friends, though we be harassed and persecuted, that’s how we believers in Jesus Christ ought to be standing; strong, steadfast, faithful and proud! And talking about faithful, here’s a little prayer I found in my Mother’s Bible, which is very appropriate for this Bit and this time.

It says: ‘Father in heaven, we thank You for Your faithfulness during the past year. Help us to remember that Your faithfulness will go with us into the New Year. In Jesus’ Name. Amen!’

Oh my brethren, that’s something we desperately need to remember! But let’s not forget either, that our faithfulness to God, also needs to run into the New Year, because it’s a two-way street, a covenant relationship. We know that the Lord’s always faithful, since He can’t be anything else but.

However, when we are faithful too, it becomes a win-win situation, the best kind of relationship that there could ever be. So please let’s seriously concentrate on our faithfulness to our wonderful, merciful, forgiving and ever-LOVING God, as this New Year opens nuh.

And having said all of that, let me go and see if I can find an appropriate Bit. (smile)

Aye Friends, it took me a little longer than I expected, because I had to make sure that the Duchess was properly attired for the weather, and got off to work safely. (smile) I feel sorry for her, having to go out in this inclement weather, but them’s the breaks. She left earlier than usual, so she should be okay with our faithful God watching over her for me.

Now let’s get right to our Bit from Isaiah, concerning the Lord’s servant, Israel. ‘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.’

Oh my people, remember how many centuries before Christ, our Messiah came, that Isaiah prophesied the Lord’s promise of a deliverer, of a Holy One? I believe it’s like four hundred years before. But despite the length of time it took, it was still faithfully fulfilled!

And that’s the hallmark of our great God; faithfulness! Remember too, that He is the undisputed BOSS and He runs the show, everything runs according to His plan and timing. Plus His timeline, and the nature of His heart, are completely different to ours.

For as Peter says: ‘But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness, but is long-suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.’ (2 Pet.3:8-9)

Yes Friends, our God views time and promises in a much more mature and faithful way than mankind does. So let’s get in a few more scriptures on His faithfulness before we close nuh, beginning with words of immortal truth from that great Psalm, 119.

‘Righteous art thou, O Lord, and upright are thy judgements. Thy testimonies that thou hast commanded are righteous and very faithful.’ (Ps.110:137-138) We certainly can’t query that!

And moving right along, listen to Bruh Paul from his first missive to the church at Corinth. ‘God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.’ (1 Cor.1:9) No room for queries there either!

Now hear how he puts it to the Thessalonians. ‘Faithful is he that calleth you, who will also do it.’ (1 Thess.5:24) Gospel truth my brethren, gospel truth!

And we’ll end with this bold, true and very moving proclamation from Hebrews, which we all know and LOVE, but which we don’t practice as faithfully as we should.

‘Let us hold fast the profession (confession) of our faith (hope) without wavering: (for he is faithful that promised;)’ (Heb.10:24) Now my people, that says it all! It’s the litmus test of our faith.

So please, let’s all go out today, and everyday hence, and walk, talk, and stand in true faithfulness to Almighty God, to ensure that our land, our families and our societies can be blessed. Cousin Sol would surely call that the wisdom for all time! Much LOVE!

…the Lord doesn’t need to prove His faithfulness to us…because He’s already done so…but we need to prove our faithfulness to Him…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 3 January 2014 Isaiah 2:8

03 Jan 2014 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: 2014, acquire, ads, advertising people, ailment, alive and kicking, blockade, bow down, Bruh Paul, Canada, carefree style, celebratory mood, chains, cheap stuff, Christmas, Christmas bills, Christmas Season, closer to Jesus, common task, concentrate on, Counselor, curtain, daily grind, dead trees, fellow believers, fellowship, fighting, financial debt, flee, frame of mind, Friday chant, friends, frigid day, fun, furthering God's glorious kingdom, generous help, gnashing of teeth, gold and silver images, goldsmith, gospel truth, graven image, greatness, heavens, hit the ground running, Holy One, idolatry, idols, immortal, Isaiah, jesus name, kill ourselves, lord god, LOVE, majesty of the Lord, materialistic, merchants, moaning, more intimate with Jesus, nations are nothing, New Year, offering, omnipotent god, overwork, perishable, poor workers, practice what you preach, pray, race of life, relaxation, rest, sales, serious manner, sickness, silversmith, Spirit of the Lord, stress, strong in power, stupidity, tent to dwell in, TGIF!, Thank God it's Friday, things of God, things of the world, time to spend with God, touted, vanity, walk of faith, weekend, weeping, work of their own hands, work week, worship, worthless

Isaiah 2:8. Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made.

Oh Friends, it’s Friday… And the cheering section cuts in: ‘Whoopee Dee! It’s Friday! Another short work week! Shout TGIF, brothers and sisters! Thank the Lord it’s Friday! For He’s looking down on us poor workers today!’

Ah mih people, the Lord is definitely looking down on us today, and everyday. And we have indeed been lucky to get two short work weeks in a row, because both Christmas and New Year’s Days fell in the middle of the week.

But please note that all across the goodly country of Canada, this Friday will be a frigid one, with whipping winds making it feel even colder. In my area the high is slated to be minus 12 Celsius. Imagine that nuh! Please dress very warm then, if you have to go out.

And all that good fortune of short work weeks, is over now. From henceforth we’ll have to work the full week for a while, before it’s bisected by a holiday. Hopefully, you haven’t become too accustomed to that holiday frame of mind, because this weekend is the last of the celebration period, then it’s back to the daily grind and common task.

So let’s wind down the celebratory mood by taking the weekend seriously, by getting back to basics, like chanting our Friday Chant in a serious and functional manner, rather than the carefree style that the Christmas season put in us. Therefore my fellow believers, in all seriousness, let’s chant.

‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’

Oh Friends, I do hope that brought us back down to earth. (smile) Because right from the start of this new year of 2014, we need to hit the ground running, running that serious race of life Bruh Paul talked about. (1 Cor.9:24-27) That means we have to get closer to and more intimate with Jesus, if we sincerely and seriously want to improve our walk of faith.

However my people, a significant blockade to that action exists in many of our lives, and it’s well put by our Bit. ‘Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made.’

And that’s the gospel truth Friends! Because we do seem to be more interested in the perishable things of the world, than the imperishable ones of God. Look at all the stuff we kill ourselves, through stress, overwork and financial debt to acquire, especially in this just past Christmas season. Hn!

We fall for all the ads, the sales, the cheap stuff, even to the point of running over and fighting with our fellow humans over unimportant materialistic stuff. Yes my brethren, our world has definitely become too materialistic, and unfortunately a lot of believers get caught up in it.

Then they claim they don’t have the time to spend with God. Chuh! Just consider the great amount of weeping, moaning and gnashing of teeth that will occur at the end of the month when the Christmas bills come due. It’s like a sickness my people, we know it, but yet still we do it every year.

And I’m here to tell us that the ONLY WAY to recover from, to wipe out that dreaded ailment of wanting everything that’s touted by the merchants and the advertising people, things we certainly don’t need, and in many cases can’t afford, is by spending more time concentrating on the things of God, rather than those of man.

Remember too, the definition of an idol; ANYTHING that keeps us away from Almighty God. And the things of the world that we’re killing ourselves over, are definitely doing that!

Now here’s an interesting question. If each of us was asked what we’d prefer, the perishable things of man, or the immortal things of God, the majority of us would consider the question a no-brainer and choose the latter. However my people, our actual actions don’t correlate to that answer. So we’re obviously not practicing what we preach.

Anyway, let’s end by looking at some supportive scripture from Isaiah, as he talks of the majesty of the Lord. ‘Who hath directed the Spirit of the Lord, or being his counselor hath taught him?… All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity (worthless).

To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him? The workman melteth (moulds) a graven image, and the goldsmith spreadeth it over with gold, and (the silversmith) casteth silver chains. He that is so impoverished that he hath no oblation (no such offering) chooseth a tree that will rot; he seeketh unto him a cunning (skilful) workman to prepare a graven image, that shall not be moved (totter).

Have ye not known? have not heard? hath it not been told you from the beginning? have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is he that sitteth upon (above) the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in….

To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth (is missing).’ (Is. 40:13, 17-22, 25-26)

Yes my people, our omnipotent God created the entire universe without any help, and there is none that can match Him, in anything at all. Not the gold and silver images, the dead trees, all the material stuff we hunger and thirst after, for they are merely things, dead things to boot, created by a human hand.

How can you bow down to something that you’ve made eh? That’s stupidity in the height!

And the sooner we learn and understand that the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is the ONLY REAL DEITY in this world, ONE WHO IS ALIVE AND KICKING, the better off we’ll all be! Much LOVE!

…wherefore my dearly beloved…flee from idolatry… (1 Cor.10:14)

Today’s Scrip-Bit 27 December 2013 Isaiah 33:22

27 Dec 2013 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: adjustments, afraid, allegiance, backsliding, body, Boxing Day, celebrating, Christ's birth, Christmas, christmas day, condemnation, consider, courage, cowardly, criticism, deceiver, delight in doing evil, disobedience, divinely ordained, drunk or sober, earth, ever-faithful God, evil, evildoers, faithful, fall prey, Father's help, fellowship, foothold, Friday chant, furthering God's glorious kingdom, generous help, get priorities straight, god, Gomorrah, good, heady days, hearken, heartfelt voice, heavens, hypocritical religion, Isaiah, jesus name, Judah, judge, judgement, justice, king, law of God, lawgiver, light, listen, LOVE, Lucifer, marrow of our souls, mind your business, no real heart for God, on our p's and q's, on the lookout, one true God, picture of Jesus, ponder, price to be paid, rebellious, refreshed, relaxation, renewed, rest, right perspective, righteousness., ritual of religion, sacrifical system, salvation, Samuel, Saul, saviour, scripture, sincere, sinful, Sodom, soul, sovereign Lord, stand up, sufficient fun, superficial worship, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, the body of Christ, the church, to obey is better than sacrifice, traps, trust, utilize time, vanish like smoke, warning, wax old, wisdom, Wonderful, worming, worship, worthless

Isaiah 33:22. For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he shall save us.

And wonder of wonders – it’s Friday! ‘Yeah! TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ come the joyous shouts. It’s the shortest workweek we’ve had for a while, since most of us had both Christmas and Boxing Days off. And some of us were even lucky enough to finagle Friday off too. (smile)

In any case, I think we deserve some time off because we’ve worked so hard during the earlier part of the year. However, as always, we need to utilize our time properly, get our priorities straight, so that we don’t fall prey to the artful and deceitful traps of the arch deceiver, Lucifer, who’s always looking for a way into our lives.

So to help us get the right perspective, let’s chant our Friday Chant. With one sincere and heartfelt voice now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.

Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’

Yes my people, especially in these heady days of celebrating Christ’s birth, we need to be continually on the lookout, to be on our p’s and q’s for anything that will give the enemy even a tiny foothold in our lives, for that’s all he needs to start worming his evil way into the marrow of our souls, and disfiguring the beautiful picture of Jesus we have painted there. So let’s enjoy ourselves, but remember that drunk or sober, we must mind our business.

And with that age-old warning, (smile) let’s turn to our Bit, hopefully the last day for it. (smile) ‘For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he shall save us.’

Oh mih breddren, I can’t get over how good and wonderful our God is to us nuh! Check this out. Earlier on in the week, I was wondering what Bit I would use for Christmas Day, since it’s the same basic stuff everybody uses and everybody knows. I wanted something different.

And lo and behold, a couple days before Christmas Day, the Lord led me to this scripture, with it lasting for several days, and most importantly having the king and saving aspect of it for His special day.

Wow! How can I not LOVE and worship Him eh? For He always meets my needs, lifts me out of any dark hole in which I’ve fallen, either literally or figuratively! Ah Friends, it’s so great to trust in the ONE TRUE GOD, He of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! But let’s get back to our Bit, before I get more sentimental and get carried away. (smile)

And finally, today we’re going to look at the ‘lawgiver’ aspect of our great and wonderful God. And the first scripture comes from Isaiah, re the call to repentance to the sinful, rebellious, backsliding nation of Judah. ‘Hear the word of the Lord, ye rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah.’ (Is.1:10)

Yes Friends, the people of Judah were behaving like those of Sodom and Gomorrah. The notes of the scholars’ will further explain the situation.

‘1:10-15. The prophet addressed the people of Judah as if they were the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah. His criticism of their hypocritical religion should not be taken as a rejection of the divinely ordained sacrificial system. Rather, it is a condemnation of their superficial worship. (See the note on 1 Sam.15:22-23) They were merely going through the ritual of religion, with no real heart for God.’

And 1 Sam.15:22:23, is where Samuel is lecturing Saul for his disobedience, and talking about ‘to obey is better than sacrifice.’ The scholars’ note says: ’15:22-23. These verses reinforce the Old Testament viewpoint that religious ritual devoid of spiritual reality and of a life of total allegiance to a sovereign Lord is worthless. (cf. Ps.40:6-8; Is.1:10-20; Mic.6:8).’

Unfortunately though Friends, we’re seeing the very same thing happening today, possibly to an even more disturbing degree. Evil has really gotten out of hand; it controls the world, with nobody, or no bodies strong and willing enough to rein it in.

But my fellow believers, that’s a big part of our job! As the church, the body of Christ here on earth, we are supposed to exemplify righteousness. But sadly, too many of us are either too afraid and/or cowardly to stand up against the evildoers, or we’re simply joining with them because we too delight in doing evil.

However my brethren, let’s remember that there’s always a price to be paid for evil doing; a substantial one too. Listen as our ever-faithful God, through His faithful prophet Isaiah, calls the faithful to courage.

‘Hearken unto me, my people; and give ear unto me, O my nation: for a law shall proceed (go forth) from me, and I will make my judgement (justice) to rest for a light of the people. My righteousness is near; my salvation is gone forth, and mine arms shall judge the people; the isles (coastlands) shall wait upon me, and on mine arm shall they trust.

Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath: for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax (grow) old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner: but my salvation shall be for ever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished (broken).’ (Is.51:4-6)

Oh Friends, on those indisputably true and very serious words of our Creator, we’ll end today!

Please, please, let’s ponder them, let’s consider how they fit into our individual lives, and then, with the Father’s help, let’s make whatever adjustments are necessary for us to fall in line with them. For that is wisdom of the greatest magnitude! Much LOVE!

…to whom shall we look for righteousness… but to Him who created us…and gave us the law…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 20 December 2013 Ecclesiastes 12:14

20 Dec 2013 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: actions, admonish, advice to the young, alive and kicking, awesome truth, bad, balancing act, Bruh Paul, care, cheer, childhood, choices, church at Corinth, consequences, controlling factor, dangerous day, dark days, deceitful conception, decisions, enjoyment, every work, evil, excuses, expectantly, eyes, fear of repercussions, fellowship, firmly grounded, flesh, followers, forearmed, forewarned, freezing rain, Friday chant, fun, futility, generous help, gladness, glorious kingdom, God is judge, God's judgement, good, heart, hedonistic sense, hidden things of darkness, impulses, in faith, jesus name, jobs, joy, judgement, judgement day, justified, life, lifetimes, live it out, LOVE, magnanimous god, magnificent, mighty, motives, perspective, praise of God, prayer, precipitation, prime of life, propagated by evildooers, prosper, real judgement, refreshed in soul, rejoice, relaxation, renewed, rest, reveal, righteousness., secret thing, Selah, self-indulgence, sight, snow, sorrow, sow diligently, straight and narrow, struggle, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, thanks, the Preacher, the world's our oyster, total commitment, trial, umbrella, vanity, vexation, warning, ways, week of work, weekend, words, wrong, youth

Ecclesiastes 12:14. For God shall bring every work into judgement with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.

And then it was Friday – a wintry Friday! There’s already some precipitation on the ground in my area – not much, but precipitation nonetheless. And who knows what’s going to follow eh; snow or freezing rain, or a combination of both? Anyhow we cut it, if the weather people are right, today’s going to be a dangerous day.

So please people, let’s all take very good care as we go about our business outside, for the weather conditions will not be ideal… Hn! And we don’t want any accidents or misfortunes just before Christmas. So if you don’t HAVE to go out, then DON’T GO OUT! Words of true wisdom Friends. (smile)

I also noticed that the weather warning somewhat dampened our usually glorious shout of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ But with prayer and care, we ought to make it safely through another winter’s day.

And to top it all off, let’s chant out Friday chant, with joy and gladness, simply because we’re alive and kicking, have jobs to go to, and live under the umbrella of a mighty, magnificent and magnanimous God!

So my brethren, let’s chant: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’

Now let’s get that perspective firmly grounded in our beings, so that we can live it out over the weekend. And do we ever need stuff like that to keep us on the straight and narrow, especially when we have a Bit like today’s: ‘For God shall bring every work into judgement with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.’

Yeh mih people, all our words and actions WILL indeed be judged on the big day! But as the saying goes; to be forewarned is to be forearmed. So now that we know what’s going to eventually happen, we have no excuses for making bad, or wrong, or evil decisions and choices.

Yesterday we saw the Preacher telling us to sow diligently in the mornings, then in the evenings, hold out our hands expectantly, in faith, because we don’t know which seed that we planted will prosper. But then again, in our rejoicing, we also have to pay attention to the many dark days of trial and struggle that will surely come during our lifetimes. It’s a fine balancing act my brethren! That’s what life is.

Now hear this wise advice from the preacher to the young. Oh if many of us had heard it when we were young!

‘Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways (impulses) of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes (as you see to be best): but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgement. Therefore remove sorrow (vexation) from thy heart, and put away evil from thy flesh: for childhood and youth (prime of life) are vanity.’ (Eccl.11:9-10)

And isn’t that the awesome truth my people! When we are young, we feel the world’s our oyster, and we can do whatever we want to, without fear of repercussions or consequences. But that’s a deceitful conception, propagated by evildoers, for as we are seeing, God will one day judge all that we ever did here on planet earth.

And please note the scholars’ take on the situation. ‘Once again the exhortation to enjoyment is put in the imperative mood. Here the appeal is particularly addressed to the youth to admonish him to enjoy life before the onset of the feeble years described in 12:1-7.

Verse 9 can hardly be taken in a hedonistic sense, because the controlling factor in the youth’s enjoyment is said to be God’s judgement. Rather, it is a warning against a life misspent in self-indulgence.’

Oh Friends, the sooner we learn these lessons, the better off we’ll all be! For yesterday we saw Jesus declare the truth of the judgement day. (Matt.12:35-37) Now listen to Bruh Paul in his first missive to the church at Corinth, talking about real judgement.

‘For I know nothing by (against) myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord. Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest (reveal) the counsels (motives) of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.’ (1 Cor.4:4-5)

Ah mih people, more words of divine truth, which will do us a lot of good to hear and inwardly digest!

And here’s an interesting note from the scholars’. ‘4:4. I know nothing by myself (lit. “I know nothing against myself”). This sort of total commitment gave Paul the authority to make such a statement as “be ye followers of me” (cf. 1 Cor.4:16; 11:1).’

Yes Friends, let’s be followers of Bruh Paul nuh, as he was a follower of Jesus! We certainly can’t go wrong if we follow his example. Much LOVE!

…and the heavens shall declare his righteousness…for God is JUDGE himself… Selah (Ps.50:6)

Today’s Scrip-Bit 15 December 2013 Psalm 89:1

15 Dec 2013 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: Abraham, acclamation, all flesh is grass, assembly of saints, awe, big snowfall, black ice, born again, Canada, children's sake, Christian dedication, Christmas Season, claim to fame, climate change, compared to God, congregation of saints, control, Controller, corruptible, Creator, darkness, deity, depths of our souls, disciple, endless praises, endures for ever, Ethan the Ezrahite, extremely special, faithfulness, falls away, fear, fellowship, fervently, flower of grass, foolish, friends, gather in church, glorious majesty, glory of man, gospel, grow, heaven, holy spirit, impatient, imperishable, impetuous, in heaven, in the beginning, incorruptible, Isaac, Jacob, Jesus, just desserts, justification, leaps and bounds, life, light of men, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, LOVE Revolution, make known God's faithfulness, motivating force, number one, obeying, on earth, one true God, persihable, Peter, ponder, praise and worship, Praise the Lord, proof, pure heart, purified souls, raise our voices, raise the roofs, reconciled to God, relationship to God, respect, reverence, rightful due, sanctuaries, sincere, sing of God's mercies, sinless life, skids, Sunday, tell others about God, the Word, to all generations, total agreement, traumatized, truth, undying gratitude, universe, veneration, withers, wonderful god, wonders

Psalm 89:1. I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.

Oh Friends, at last my neck of the woods has received its first big snowfall of the season! Granted, it’s not as big as some of those experienced up north, or in places like Dallas and Philly recently, but it’s certainly big enough to get me going. (smile)

You know we’ve become so spoiled over the last few years with comparatively small quantities of snow in the winter time, that when we do get a fairly large amount, some of us get sort of traumatized. (smile) But we need to remember that this is the North Country, good old Canada, where in these days of climate change, anything is possible.

And though the snow made the roads slippery and icy, people were still driving as though they were clean and dry. I guess there will always be the impetuous, impatient and foolish amongst us.

I drove my wife’s car instead of mine because hers has on snow tires and mine doesn’t, but I don’t know if that was any better, because I feel more comfortable in mine, and on two stretches of relatively clean, clear, straight road, not going very fast, I still had two small skids, possibly meaning that there was black ice on the road, although it looked okay.

And the amazing thing is that there were still oodles of vehicles on the road. One would think because it was Saturday, with not as many people having to go to work, and the snow still falling, the roads would be fairly empty. I was only out there because I had to be.

Anyway, enough of my rambling about the snow, for it’s still out there, it’s still mucho cold, and nothing I say or do will change that. (smile) So let’s turn to something that we have some say in, our Bit; most likely on its last legs today.

‘I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.’

Now that my Friends, is something we have much control over! And isn’t it just great to praise and worship our wonderful God, and tell others about Him? It sure is, especially on a Sunday when many of us gather in church to fellowship and sing His endless praises.

Oh my people, today when we raise our voices in praise and worship, let’s make it something extremely special nuh, let’s raise the roofs on our sanctuaries! Let the feeling of acclamation come truly from the depths of our souls!

Let’s get in agreement with the psalmist, Ethan the Ezrahite, as he proudly proclaims: ‘And the heavens shall praise thy wonders, O Lord: thy faithfulness also in the congregation of the saints. For who in the heaven can be compared unto the Lord?

Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the Lord? God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had (held) in reverence of all them that are about him.’ (Ps. 89:5-7)

And in total agreement, all God’s people shouted a loud and grateful: ‘Praise the Lord!’

Yes my Friends, there is NONE mightier or more worthy of praise than the ONE TRUE GOD of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Creator and Controller of this mighty universe!

And there’s absolutely no doubt about that, for as John so wisely puts it: ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.

All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended (apprehended) it not.’ (John 1:1-5)

Ah mih breddren, what a magnificent description as it refers to Jesus and His relationship to Almighty God! No other supposed deity can lay claim to such fame, to such distinction! So please, my people, please let’s start paying Him the proper respect and reverence He so awesomely deserves nuh.

Not the wishy washy way too many of us currently behave towards our wonderful Lord and Saviour, who gave up His sinless life for us, so that we could be reconciled to the Father. That fact alone deserves undying gratitude and LOVE!

And we’ll end with further proof and justification of His glorious majesty, through the words of His staunch disciple, Peter, as He calls for true and serious Christian dedication.

‘Seeing that ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned (sincere) LOVE of the brethren, see that ye LOVE one another with a pure heart fervently: Being born again, not of corruptible (perishable) seed, but of incorruptible (imperishable), by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the Word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.’ (1 Pet.1:22-25)

Oh Friends, I can’t put it any better than that, so I won’t even try to clarify it. I’ll just say that it would be such a pleasure, such a motivating force, if more of us could truly rise up and give Jesus His just desserts; put Him first in ALL we do, with the awe and veneration that’s His rightful due.

Then His church and His LOVE Revolution would surely grow by leaps and bounds, and consequently, our world would be a much better place to dwell.

Let’s ponder that today Friends, and for our children’s sake, put it into action, as soon as possible. Much LOVE!

…to all believers…this Christmas season…let’s truly show our LOVE and adoration for Jesus…let’s truly make Him NUMBER ONE…on all the earth…as well as in heaven…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 13 December 2013 Psalm 89:1

13 Dec 2013 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: awesome majesty, bear burdens, Bruh David, called to courage, change, Christmas Season, contemplation, covenant, cry in distress, deliver us from sin, descendants, do not be afraid, eternal death, eternal life, Ethan the Ezrahite, ever-faithful God, everlasting faithfulness, faithful, faithful promise, faithfulness, fear, fellowship, Firday 13th, for ever, forgiveness, foundation of the earth, Friday chant, fun, furthering God's glorious kingdom, generations, generous help, God's sure promises, gospel truth, grace, greatest gifts to man, grow old, heaven, Jesus Christ, jesus name, joyfully shouting, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, loving, loving kindness, magnanimous god, make known, merciful, no labour, omnipotent, perseverance, pilgrims, proudly, ravages, refreshed in soul, relaxation, renewed, respect, rest, right track, salvation, seed, smoke, sojourn, stand strong, steadfast faith, superstition, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the Lord's mercies, time to sing, true, true believer, ungodly earth, vanish away, veneration, weekend, wisdom, work of thy hands

Psalm 89:1. I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.

Oh Friends, it’s Friday…Friday the 13th! Now does that raise fears in your spirit, re it being an unlucky day? I surely hope not, because there’s absolutely nothing to fear from a Friday that falls on the 13th day of the month.

It’s just a bunch of superstitions dating back to who knows when and where! They can’t even decide where it originally came from. So we’ll repeat, there’s nothing to be afraid of on this Friday 13th December 2013, or any other Friday 13th at all!

And that’s especially so if you’re a true believer in Jesus Christ, our wonderful Lord and Saviour. He’s faithfully promised to save us from any evil, so there’s nothing to be afraid of. And just in case you’re one of those who have difficulty handling a Friday 13th, then you’re probably suffering from ‘Paraskevidekatriaphobics.’

Yes Friends, it’s a big word for a fear that ought not to exist! So please keep joyfully shouting ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ because whether it’s called black, or misfortune, or unlucky Friday, it’s still the day before the weekend, and there’s no labour for two, whole, big, long days! (smile)

And to keep us on the right track, let’s chant our Friday Chant with much affirmation nuh. ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.

Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’

Now that’s the right way to view the weekend my people! And in conjunction with our Bit, we shall certainly stand strong this weekend.

Our Bit comes from Psalm 89, which deals with God’s sure promises to Bruh David. It’s a contemplation written by Ethan the Ezrahite, a man of much wisdom, (1 Kin.4:31) and also one of the singers in Bruh David’s band. (1 Chr.15:19)

So he was well qualified to declare in the opening verse: ‘I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.’

And this Christmas season my brethren, is certainly a time to sing of and make known to all and sundry, the great mercies and the everlasting faithfulness of our omnipotent and magnanimous God!

Look, He promised to deliver us from sin and its ravages, death eternal, and in response sent His only Son, Jesus Christ to do it, thus giving us the two greatest gifts ever known to man; salvation and eternal life! Wow! Now how can we not jump and shout for joy at those two life saving and life giving situations eh?

And as the psalmist continues: ‘For I have said, Mercy (LOVING-kindness) shall be built up for ever: thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens. I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant, Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations. Selah.’ (Ps.89:2-4)

And all of that is gospel truth my Friends! And if you don’t believe me, then listen to these scriptures which declare and establish that LOVING-kindness and faithfulness of our eternal God.

Psalm 102, a cry in distress, puts it thus: ‘Of old hast thou laid the foundation of the earth: and the heavens are the work of thy hands. They shall perish, but thou shalt endure (continue): yea, all of them shall wax (grow) old like a garment; as a vesture (cloak) shalt thou change them, and they shall be changed:

But thou art the same, and thy years shall have no end. The children of thy servants shall continue, and their seed (descendants) shall be established before thee.’ (Ps.102:25-28)

Who says our God isn’t merciful, LOVING, faithful, omnipotent and true eh! He certainly is my people, as all of us can attest to in so many aspects of our lives!

And we’ll end today with this outstanding verse from Isaiah, where the faithful are called to courage. ‘Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath: for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax (grow) old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner: but my salvation shall be for ever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished (broken).’ (Is.51:6)

Oh my people, please hang on tightly to those words of our ever-faithful God, because it’s in His words, His promises, that we find courage, perseverance and steadfast faith to bear our burdens as pilgrims on this evil, ungodly earth!

And we’ll have more corroborative scripture on this topic tomorrow to boost our spirits, provided the Lord’s in favour, of course.

But till then my Friends and fellow believers, please, please, let’s stand steadfast and strong, and sing staunchly and proudly of our God; of His mercies, His LOVING-kindness, His forgiveness, His grace and all the other wonderful stuff that He’s so faithfully and LOVINGLY provided to help us on our short sojourn here on earth. Much LOVE!

…when God’s people stand strong…in faith…LOVE…and mercy…the whole world takes notice…and stands up in respect, in veneration…of His awesome majesty…

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