Today’s Scrip-Bit   9 February 2024 Psalm 121:2.

09 Feb 2024 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 121:2.       My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth.

And as the glorious sunshine floods the land, the shouts of joy rise up to heaven! ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ Yes friends, the weekend is here at long last. And there’s not only beautiful sunshine to enjoy it with, but also spring-like temperatures. Yes, temps in double-digits. Imagine that nuh. Having springlike temps and it’s not even the middle of February! Wow! Strange things do happen in this life oui!  And believe me, we’re not complaining. I guess you’ll see people out and about without winter coats and such like because of the fairly warm temperatures, but we have to be very careful, for it’s in this kind of weather that we tend to get sick, believing it’s so warm and not dressing properly, then getting caught in a sudden cold front. So please don’t be fooled by the non-winter temp and dress appropriately. Sermon done! (smile) 

And on this glorious spring-like Friday my people, we’ll look at the very popular and very relevant Psalm 121, titled ‘God Neither Slumbers Nor Sleeps.’ It’s one of those Songs of Degrees or Accents that the pilgrims sang on their way up to Jerusalem to participate in the big feasts. And the psalm begins in a very interesting manner. So please read with me: ‘I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills (mountains), from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth.’ (Ps. 121:1-2) 

Now isn’t that interesting? It certainly is! The psalmist declares (yesss!!!) that he will lift up his eyes to the mountains, while wandering where his help is going to come from. The last part of that first verse should probably be in question form, and that’s why so many of us believe that the writer is looking to the hills and mountains for his divine help. But not so. He sees them more as harmful or threatening. And in the second verse he answers that question very clearly. ‘My help cometh from the Lord which made heaven and earth.’ (Ps. 121:2) And that’s exactly what we believers ought to believe and expect; that the Lord God Jehovah was, is and will always be our help, both in the good and the bad times! 

Then he goes on to tell us all about how God will look after us. ‘He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber. Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is thy keeper (protector): the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand. The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve (keep) thee from all evil. He shall preserve (keep) thy soul. The Lord shall preserve (keep) thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and ever for evermore.’ (Ps. 121:3-8) Ah my fellow believers, that’s the promise of our great God! And if by chance we don’t believe it, then let’s bring up some other scriptures that assure us of God’s help in our lives, if we put our sincere trust in Him. 

Listen to how Cousin Sol puts it in Proverbs, when he asserts that the wisdom of God, His knowledge and understanding are oh so precious. ‘My son, let them not (knowledge and understanding) depart from thine eyes: keep sound wisdom and discretion: So shall they be life unto thy soul, and grace (favour) to thy neck. Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely, and thy foot shall not stumble. When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid: yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet. Be not afraid of sudden fear (terror), neither of the desolation of (trouble from) the wicked, when it cometh. For the Lord shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken (caught).’ (Prov. 3:21-26) There you have it again, my fellow saints; the confidence that the Lord our God will keep us safe if we worship and obey Him. 

Now hear Bruh David in this contemplation, Psalm 16, titled ‘God Preserves His People.’ He writes with the utmost confidence: ‘The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest (uphold) my lot. The lines (my circumstances) are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage (inheritance). I will bless the Lord , who hath given me council: my reins (heart) also instruct me in the night seasons. I have set the Lord always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh shall also rest (dwell securely) in hope. For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell (the abode of the dead); neither wilt thou suffer (allow) thine Holy One to see corruption. Thou wilt shew the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.’ (Ps. 16:5-11) 

Oh my people, what wonderful words of confident assurance of God’s goodness and mercy to those who sincerely believe in and trust Him! Yes, and as the scholars remind us: ‘David’s confidence in his ultimate destiny is valid for him (and for all believers) only because Christ has travelled down that path and paved the way for all who believe in Him.’ Glory Hallelujah! And you can check the reference in Acts 2:25-28, where Peter, in his big Pentecost sermon, quotes the words of Bruh David from Ps. 16:8-11. 

Now, let’s go to the throne of grace with confident humility, asking for divine help in these times of worldwide distress and anxiety. Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough…   because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help. Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. 

And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times. We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’ 

Now friends, if we really desire divine help, then it’s time to show our trusting faith and be good Christian examples, so that others can see what we have and want it too. Much LOVE!

…if you truly believe…then there’s no need to worry…

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Today’s Scrip-Bit 13 May 2015 Psalm 46:1‏‏

13 May 2015 Leave a comment

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

Psalm  46:1.  God is our refuge and strength, a very present help (an abundantly available help) in time of trouble.

 
Bonjour, my Friends and neighbours! What a great day to be alive! It’s a wonderful Wednesday morning, and I’m here to boost our spirits and try and get and keep us closer to Almighty God. Yes my people, I’m here this morning to remind us of the marvellous, magnificent, magnanimous and majestic Deity we serve and worship!

He is just the greatest thing ever! And is He ever faithful and true to His promises! And I can personally vouch for that. Let me give you a recent example. Now, whenever I read my devotionals, I keep an eye out for anything that seems worthy of sharing, but oftentimes I don’t even need an eye open, because they simply jump off the page at me.

Yesterday, while reading, I idly wondered what I would write about today. Soon thereafter though, I came across this poem in the One year Book of Bible Promises that seemed interesting enough to share, but the clincher occurred when I read the promise that it was based on; none other than our Bit. Holy smokes!

I obviously chuckled and said a thankful ‘Thank You Lord!’ That’s because I took it as a sure sign He wanted me to share the poem. And never wanting to be disobedient, (smile) here it is in living colour. It’s titled: ‘You Did All the Rest.’

And it says: ‘O Lord God! I did what you asked me to do: I just opened windows  Wide… Wide… And You did all the rest! You poured into my heart A blessed, blissful contentment. You saturated my mind With gigantic thoughts of You. You struck an artesian well within me Until sheer joy sprang forth.

You led me out of the valley of despair Into a succession of incredible happenings. Problems which seemed insurmountable Melted like wax before my eyes. Fears faded away like threatening clouds. You startled me You amazed me With the glory of your revelation.

It is true Gloriously true – I have literally walked and breathed with God. I just opened windows Wide… Wide…God. You did all the rest!’ 

Oh mih people, that’s exactly how our ever-LOVING God operates, when we genuinely seek Him with open and sincere hearts and minds! And I’m sure many of you readers can attest to that fact this morning. Isn’t it wonderful to serve such a Deity? It surely is!

So this morning Friends, let’s throw open those windows of our souls wide, wide, so that God can come in and do the rest nuh. For like our Bit so truthfully declares: ‘God is our refuge and strength, a very present help (an abundantly available help) in time of trouble.’ 

But you know what too my brethren? God isn’t only a refuge and strength and help in times of trouble, but ALL THE TIME! In good times, in so so times, as well as bad times, He’s always there to guide and keep us! Glory to God!

But note though, we have to open up to Him completely, and like Gramps Schuller (Dr. Robert H. Schuller) said yesterday, let it all go, allow Him to work at His pace, in His time, without continually hanging over His shoulder and trying to tell Him what to do. We don’t like others hanging over our shoulders telling us what to do, so why should our Creator like it eh?

Now let’s look at some scriptures which support our contention – no sorry, not contention, but truth. Listen to the psalmist, re God’s sustaining power. ‘I will lift up mines eyes unto the hills (mountains) from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved (to slip): he that keepeth thee will not slumber.

Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is thy keeper (protector): the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand. The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve (keep) thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul. The Lord shall preserve (keep) thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.’ (Ps.121:1-8)

Oh my people, what wonderful promises our mighty God makes! And He faithfully keeps everyone of them. Hn, hn! I wasn’t planning to use the whole psalm, but after reading it, I had no other choice seeing that it was chocked full of God’s grace and power.

Obviously the psalmist wasn’t expecting the hills themselves to help him, but sees them as more of a reflection of the power and majesty of the One who made them.

Now hear the prophet Jeremiah as he expounds on the situation. ‘Truly in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills, and from the multitude of mountains: truly in the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel.’ (Jer.13:23). Gospel truth that Friends!

Now let’s end with some wise and encouraging words of Bruh David from Psalm 145 – The Lord is gracious. ‘The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him in truth. He will fulfill the desire of them that fear (revere) him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them.

The Lord preserveth all them that LOVE him: but all the wicked will he destroy. My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord: and let all flesh bless his holy name for ever and ever.’ (Ps.145:18-21)

Oh Friends, what beautiful and true declarations! Please, as true followers of Christ, let’s go out and put them into action today nuh. For that is indeed heavenly wisdom! Much LOVE!

…to praise and glorify God…that is man’s earthly purpose…

P.S. Please excuse the lateness of the Bit, but the ole fella didn’t get to bed until minutes to three this morning. Don’t ask what I was doing either. That’s for me to know and you find out. (smile) Much LOVE!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 28 February 2015 Psalm 62:7‏

28 Feb 2015 1 Comment

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

Psalm 62:7. In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.

Well my people, it’s a brand new day, filled with brand new blessings, brand new mercies and a lot of other good stuff from our heavenly Father, including the breath of life, which allows us to enjoy the things He bestows on us each and every day. For that we ought to say ‘Thank You Father!’ with a grateful heart, and show our appreciation by living the way He desires us to.

Unfortunately though, too many of us take the things given to us by Almighty God for granted, and just go about our worldly business without even a thought for Him. But when the heifer dust hits the fan, and the bucket bottom drops out, we’re quick to cry out: ‘Oh God, help me!’ However Friends, life doesn’t work that way. We need to acknowledge the One who created us and keeps us going in this evil and dangerous world.

So please, when we awaken every morning, let’s give Him some thanks and praise for allowing us to see another beautiful day on earth, and also ask Him to lead and guide us safely through any trials and tribulations that may come against us as we continue our pilgrim’s journey. Starting out the day with God gives us a splendid boost, renews our commitment to Him and allows us to face the world in confidence, without the fear, worry and anxiety that currently permeates it. It is the best remedy for whatever ails us.

And I got this interesting quote from my Friend Anselm a couple of days ago, which I decided to share with you, because it will give us some food for thought. (smile) The quote is attributed to William Faulkner (1897-1962) the famous American writer and Nobel Prize winner. The quote says: ‘It’s a shame that the only thing a man can do for eight hours a day is work. He can’t eat for eight hours; he can’t drink for eight hours; he can’t make love for eight hours. The only thing a man can do for eight hours is work.’

And if you really consider the statement, there is a lot of truth to it. Most of us have just never considered it in such terms before. Many of us even work for longer periods of time than eight hours. Now why did our Creator make us like that eh; only able to do those good things for short periods of time, but be able to perform the anathema of our society, work, for such long periods? Yes Friends, most of dislike work, abhor it even, but we can do it for longer than any other enjoyable task.

I can’t tell you why the Lord designed us like that, possible because He wants us to work more than we indulge ourselves in self-gratification and worldly lusts. But I do know that if we don’t consciously seek Him, we’ll be missing the best protection and guidance available in this crazy and cruel world. And that’s simply not wisdom at all my brethren! Why do you think Bruh David proclaimed so assuredly in our Bit? ‘In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.’  

Bruh David could afford to make such a staunch and confident pronouncement because the Lord had been his keeper and provider from the days of his youth. The Lord had never let him down in his times of need, but had even given him much more than he deserved. He paid the price for his wrongdoings, a steep one too, but the Lord knew that his heart was right towards Him, and thus had mercy on Him.

And Bruh David is not the only psalmist to sing out God’s praises like that. Listen to these praiseworthy words of Psalm 121 – God’s sustaining power. ‘I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills (mountains) from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord which made heaven and earth.  He will not suffer thy foot to be moved (slip): he that keepeth thee will not slumber. Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord is thy keeper (protector)the Lord is thy keeper: the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand. The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul. The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.’ (Ps.121:1-8)

Ah my people, what encouraging words! I didn’t intend to quote the whole psalm, but once I read it, I had no choice because it was so all-encompassing, so true and encouraging, beautifully and loudly singing the praises of our mighty Creator, Protector and Provider.

And just think for a moment Friends, that that same wonderful God whom the Israelites served way back then, is the same God that we serve today. So why would He stop doing those things He did for them long ago, and not do the same for us, if we sincerely serve and worship Him? No reason whatsoever my people!

He stated quite clearly to the Israelites: ‘I am the Lord, I change not: therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.’ (Mal.3:6) And yuh know what my brethren? I think that’s the same reason why we have not been consumed – as yet. But we will be eventually if we keep on being so blatantly ungodly and evil. So we had better say thanks or two to the Lord’s ‘unchangeability!’(smile)

And we’ll end with this wonderful verse of encouragement from Isaiah. ‘Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the Lord hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted.’ (Is.49:13)

Oh Friends, it doesn’t get any better than that, especially since we have seen the fulfillment of that promise by Jesus’ coming to earth, dying to atone for our sins, being resurrected and ascending back to heaven, where He’s now our Chief Priest and Advocate before the Father! Wow!

And all God’s children gave a loud and joyful shout of ‘Glory Hallelujah! All praise be to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit! Long may they reign! Amen!’

Now my fellow believers, let’s go out into the world and do our do for Jesus nuh, with the pride, diligence, excellence and faith that He expects of us, for that’s nothing but heavenly wisdom. Much Love!…without a doubt…working for Jesus…is the best job we can ever get…