Today’s Scrip-Bit   16 January 2022 Hebrews 4:16.

16 Jan 2022 Leave a comment

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

Hebrews 4:16.     Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Another Sunday, another day of worship friends! That ever so important time every week, when we praise and glorify our most wonderful God corporately, even if it’s by technological means and not actual physical gathering. That’s because worship is worship whether you are in a sanctuary together or a million miles apart, connected only by TV or computer.

And worship isn’t only to give God His much deserved thanks and glory, but also a time of restoring and renewing our faith in Christ Jesus, where we receive His strength and renewal of our spirit, so that we can go back out again in the new work week and raise up His name to all the world. Like Jesus said to the disciples: ‘Go ye therefore, and teach (make disciples of) all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt. 28:19-20)

Yes friends, that’s one of our major earthly purposes, and worshipping together every Sunday, helps to give us the wherewithal to do our bounden duty. So let’s begin our worship with a song of praise that’s rather appropriate for these turbulent times in which we are currently living. It’s aptly titled: ‘Lord I Need You!’ And do we ever need Him, my faithful brethren! So let’s offer up our sacrifices of praise through the contemporary Christian song, as sung by one of its writers, Matt Maher.

In a soulful, scintillating, heartfelt manner, let’s sing! ‘Lord I come, I confess Bowing here, I find my rest Without You, I fall apart You’re the one that guides my heart (Chorus) Lord, I need You, oh I need You Every hour, I need You My one defense, my righteousness Oh God, how I need You) Where sin runs deep, Your grace is more Where grace is found is where You are And where You are, Lord I am free Holiness is Christ in me (Chorus)

So teach my song to rise to You When temptation comes my way And when I cannot stand, I’ll fall on You Jesus, You’re my hope and stay (Chorus. Lord, I need You, oh I need You Every hour, I need You My one defense, my righteousness Oh God, how I need You You’re my one defense, my righteousness Oh God, how I need You My one defense, my righteousness Oh God, how I need You.’

Oh my fellow saints, Jesus is indeed ALL of those things to us! That’s why we so desperately need Him, every minute, every hour of every day! And what’s a need you ask? One explanation goes like this: ‘A need is something that is necessary for an organism to live a healthy life. Needs are distinguished from wants in that, in the case of a need, a deficiency causes a clear adverse outcome: a dysfunction or death. In other words, a need is something required for a safe, stable and healthy life (e.g. food, water, shelter) while a want is a desire, wish or aspiration.’

And that’s the thing about needing Jesus; without Him we can’t live, safe, healthy, stable lives, in fact we can’t live at all, we’d die spiritually, with no hope of eternal life! And that, as we all know, is the saddest thing that can ever happen to a human soul and sprit. Now the website, Godtube, tells us: ‘This song confesses our need for the Lord every hour as our “one defense, my righteousness.” And that’s the indisputable truth! Christ is the first line of defense for believers and also the author of all our righteousness. It’s only through Hm that we are made righteous in the eyes of the Lord God Jehovah.

Then, they invite us to discover some of the scriptural influences in the song, pointing out that verse one: ‘Lord, I come, I confess Bowing here I find my rest Without You I fall apart You’re the One that guides my heart,’ reflects the Great Invitation of Jesus. “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30) And you can’t find fault with that reasoning.

And per  the Chorus: ‘Lord, I need You, oh, I need You Every hour I need You My one defense, my righteousness Oh God, how I need You,’ they say that points to these two magnificent and encouraging scriptures. First, one from Hebrews: “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16)

And isn’t that the awesome truth! Once Jesus broke the curtain of the veil that separated us from God by His magnificent resurrection, we can now freely go to the Father for help in each and every situation. The problem here though, is that too many of us don’t make use of this awesome provision, still retaining the old thinking that God is too holy and far away for us lowly, sinful minions to go to Him on what we consider trivial matters.

But the truth is my people, our God wants to get involved in EVERYTHING we do, in EVERY aspect of our lives. That’s why He gave His only Son Jesus Christ as the propitiation for our sins. Thus reconciling us to Himself, bringing us back to His fold as His beloved children. And what child doesn’t admire His father and go to Him in times of need eh? And since Jesus is our Advocate, High Priest, Defender, Provider, our ALL in ALL, it means we can go to Him without fear, but with confidence to meet our needs.

Then the second verse they say the chorus reflects is this one from Peter. “But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15) Yes friends, we must always be ready, willing and able to tell others why we believe so wholeheartedly in Christ, but in a gentle and respectful manner, like Jesus would.

So with the sun shining brightly in my area this very cold Sunday, it is indeed a good day to be alive, and to worship our omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent and ever-faithful, ever-LOVING God, who, through His marvellous Son, Jesus Christ, satisfies all our needs. Please give Him much thanks and praise today my people for His marvellous grace, goodness and mercy to us underserving folks! Much LOVE!

…once you have Christ in your life…you don’t need anybody else…Glory Be!

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8

Today’s Scrip-Bit   1 January 2022 Philippians 2:5.

01 Jan 2022 Leave a comment

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

Philippians 2:5.     Let this mind be in you, which was in Christ.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! 

Well, it’s 2022 now my brethren, and I want to wish us all in this most favoured Scrip-Bit family a blessed and happy New Year! Some things will change, but most of life will remain the same, and with Jesus dwelling in our souls and bodies, we will be able to handle whatever comes against us, just like we handled it this past year! All glory be to God my people, for His goodness and mercy to us, sinful children of men! 

And like I’ve been saying over the last few New Year’s days, the only resolution we need to make is to get closer to Jesus! Like He promised: ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:33) Like Bruh David says in Psalm 37 – The true state of the wicked: ‘I have been young , and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed (descendants) begging bread.’ (Ps. 37:25) And that’s the indisputable truth my fellow believers! No righteous believer in Christ will ever beg for bread! 

And Bruh Paul’s words to the Philippians reinforces that quite well. ‘But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.’ (Phil. 4:19) And if all of that doesn’t raise your passion for Christ this New Year’s morning, then I don’t know what will! (smile) Now, since it’s Saturday, let’s turn to the quotes that our friend Anselm sent us this past week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. 

And the first one tells it exactly like it is: ‘There are greater things to be achieved in every new year, and each and every one must prepare themselves to be great, not by words of the mouth, but by a lot of sacrifices.’ And that’s the glorious truth friends. As they say, actions speak louder than words! You can’t deny that. And if we really want to live for Jesus, this year of 2022 is going to call for Christians to make a lot of sacrifices in Christ’s name and do numerous actions that will raise His presence in this evil and ungodly world. 

Remember Jesus said that if we don’t deny ourselves, give up our will, take up our cross and follow Him, we are not worthy to be called His disciple. (Matt. 16:24) Living for Jesus friends, means making sacrifices for Him, even to the ultimate sacrifice of giving up our life for Him. But thankfully, in our Western society, going to the ultimate sacrifice is not necessary, although it is in some other societies around the world, and those believers there do exactly that. 

But out here in our wonderful and entitled society many of us won’t even sacrifice a broken fingernail on Christ’s behalf, but yet we expect to get showers of blessings, and live high on the hog. It won’t happen friends. The only way that Jesus will be glorified in our currently ungodly world is by His followers making much sacrifice, and not the easy, but the tough kind! 

That brings us to this next quote: ‘The control centre of your life is your attitude.’ And that’s no lie. Your basic attitude towards life in general, and Christ in particular, controls what you will and won’t do. So, if you have an arrogant, evil, ungodly attitude or mindset, then those are the things to which you will gravitate. On the other hand, if you have a kind, LOVING and godly mindset, you will gravitate to the things of Christ. And this year, my fellow believers, more than ever before, our premier task is to get the unbelievers to change their mindset to one that values and believes in Christ Jesus, for that’s the only way our world will ever improve. 

And our problems won’t go away, or even be lessened, until, and unless more of us get together under the glorious umbrella of Christ. Remember Bruh Paul’s entreaty to the Philippians? ‘Fulfill ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same LOVE, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem the other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but everyman also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was in Christ.’  (Phil. 2:2-5) 

Yes friends, we all need to come to the thinking of Christ; humble, obedient, LOVING, compassionate and considering the welfare of others more than ourselves, if we ever hope to better this world. That leads us to the next quote: ‘To succeed you have to believe in something with such passion that it becomes a reality.’ And as most of us know, that’s the awesome truth! You can’t succeed at ANYTHING, unless you are so passionate about it, that in your mind and actions, it’s like it has already come to fruition, already become a reality. 

And I believe a good analogy is what Jesus said in this Beatitude: ‘Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.’(Matt. 5:6) Yes mih people to achieve anything, we must be that passionate over it, like we’re hungering and thirsting for it. And that carries us right into the following quote:  ‘No alarm clock needed. My passion wakes me.’ Now that’s all a part of the same equation; to succeed takes great passion. So much so that we don’t even need an alarm clock to wake us up in the morning, our passion for our project does that automatically. 

And the last quote puts it all together: ‘A great leader’s courage to fulfil his vision comes from passion, not position.’ Oh my brethren until we realize that a leader’s position is not merely a state of power but one of enormous and constant passion, we will never be ready for a leadership role. And the best example we have of that is our Leader, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who withstood all the sacrifice, resentment, rejection and punishment He had to bear, because He was truly passionate about saving us, about saving a sinful mankind, and that was the only way it could be righteously and justly done. 

As the Good Book so exultantly declares, admonishes and advises (smile): ‘Wherefore seeing (since) we are compassed about  with (surrounded by) so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset (ensnare) us, and let us run with patience (perseverance) the race that is set before us. Looking unto Jesus, the author (originator) and finisher (perfector) of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.’ (Heb. 12:1-2) 

My fellow saints, if we want to be true and sincere followers of Christ, then we have to give up our own desires and follow His; follow His lead, if He is our leader. And remember what He’s called us to do, His last request to His disciples? ‘All power (authority) is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach (make disciples of) all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt. 28:18-20) 

Now isn’t it time we got serious and do what our Leader asks of us? It certainly is, especially with the sad, sick and sorry state that our world is currently in! Much LOVE!

…if you truly know Jesus…you can’t help but LOVE Him…and LOVE those around you…even when it’s difficult to do… 

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8        

Today’s Scrip-Bit 9 August 2021 Daniel 7:14a.

09 Aug 2021 Leave a comment

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

Daniel 7:14a.     And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom that all people (peoples), nations, and languages, should serve him: 
​

Time to get a move on friends, that important but much disliked day called Monday is here! And why is it important, you sneer? Because it is the first day of the work week, and the first day after our Sunday worship, when our hearts are still bursting with faith and confidence, that we have a chance to share Jesus with a wide body of people, out there in the working world. And sharing Jesus is one of the most important of our duties as Christians, and earthly ambassadors for Jesus. 

Remember some of His last words to the disciples: `All power (authority) is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt. 28:18-20) We call those instructions the Great Commission, which means we’ve been entrusted with a big job. 

Hear how the scholars explain it nuh. ‘The triumphant, living Lord sends forth His ambassadors to proclaim His gospel throughout all the world. The Great Commission is not just an order but a pronouncement of victory (mundus regium Christi) by the risen Saviour through His disciples. All power or authority is now in the hands of Christ, in heaven and on the earth. On the basis of that authority and power the Christian disciple is to carry out the Great Commission of the church.’ 

And that’s why we are to be up and about our Father’s business this Monday morning! No slouching, laziness or procrastination, for with each passing minute, the time of Christ’s return is getting shorter, and there’s much to be done before He comes back. Now here is an interesting instance when we can determine the authenticity and magnificence of God’s Word as being all from the same source and is like a single thread woven through a whole blanket. We are talking about one of the visions of the four beasts that the prophet Daniel saw in Babylon, centuries before Jesus came. 

He says: ‘I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom that all people (peoples), nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.’ (Dan. 7:13-14) 

Yes mih bredrin, the Word might have been written by different people, but it is still one cohesive document, because its basic source was the same throughout, the Lord God Jehovah. And thus, we can see how things were prophesied long before they even took place. As the Lord so rightly says about the coming of Christ, through the prophet Isaiah: ‘Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth, I tell you of them.’ (Is. 42:9) Oh, what a mighty God is our God! 

But turning back to those two verses from Daniel, here are some explanations from the scholars. ‘7:13. The Son of man who came to the Ancient of days is the Son of God approaching God the Father. Evidently, Jesus took the title ‘Son of man,’ which was His favourite way of referring to Himself in the Gospels, from this passage.’ ‘7:14. The commencement of Christ’s everlasting dominion will take place at His second coming (cf. Matt. 24:30; 25:31; Rev. 11:15).’ 

Now hear how Jesus Himself describes the coming of the Son of man, that Second Coming. ‘Immediately after the tribulation of those days, shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken. And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect (chosen ones) from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.’ (Matt. 24:29-31) 

And the scholars tell us: ‘24:29-31. The reference to the events immediately after the tribulation, such as the sun being darkened and the stars falling, refer to the cataclysmic events that will accompany Christ’s millennial kingdom on earth.’ Yes friends, it definitely won’t be a nice time to be without Christ as your Lord and Saviour. And the problem there is that things can get moving at any time. And as Jesus later says: ‘But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.’ (Matt. 24:36) So we just have to be prepared from now, for whenever that fateful day comes. 

And if we are serious about the whole thing, it means we have to get in God’s good graces asap, and stay in them too. And the best way to begin that process is by going to Him in prayer, the method He devised for communication between Him and us. Let’s therefore offer up our Monday Morning Battle Hymn which tells the tale of our troubled world. 

All together now: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. We desperately need Your divine help, for You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems. 

Heavenly Father, we admit that we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but we know that You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. That’s why we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading with You to give us wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems. 

And Father, we pray that you will ease the pain of the many who are suffering from negative situations. Please show them Your awesome grace and mercy, and keep Your promise that You’ll hear our prayer, forgive us, and heal our land if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’ 

And what the Lord’s looking for from us now is sincere repentance and a turning from our evil ways. All our hopes and dreams are now in our hands my people! Much LOVE!

…the Bible is the best-selling book ever, for a reason…it is chocked full of the truth…God’s Word…                                                                                                                  

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8            

Today’s Scrip-Bit 12 June 2021 2 Timothy 4:7.

12 Jun 2021 Leave a comment

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

2 Timothy 4:7.     I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course (race), I have kept the faith:

And then it was Saturday; that beautiful, lazy, sleep in day! Although I don’t think a lot of people will be sleeping into day because some of the restrictions on the lockdown have apparently been lifted. Don’t ask me what they are, because I have stopped paying attention since they are always so confusing. (smile) 

But if yesterday was any reflection of that, with the crowded streets and plentiful traffic, more than we’ve seen for over a year, then today will indeed be crazy. Let’s hope though that people will still pay attention to some of the realities of the situation, because this thing is not over, far from it, and like we’ve had before, a relapse is still possible, especially with all the new variants out there. End of sermon! 

Let’s turn to our Saturday business now; that of checking out the quotes that our friend Anselm sent us, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And the first one says: ‘It is better to fail in originality than to succeed in imitation.’ Now that’s all well and good in theory, but in actual practice, it’s not so easy to do. Just look at how the nation of Japan rose to greatness by first cheaply copying the designs of other countries, and now China is doing the very same thing. So what does it say about originality eh? (smile) 

And remember that famous saying: ‘Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.’ Meaning that it’s a compliment to do or think like someone else. The problem is that though we should all try to be original, not all of us can, or will be. Some of us will just have to settle for making the original things better. (smile) 

And the next quote says: ‘There are two types of people who will tell you that you cannot make a difference in this world: those who are afraid to try and those who are afraid you will succeed.’ Now that’s no lie, for some people are just scared to take a risk, to step out on a limb, just want to always play it safe, but you can never succeed by playing it safe. And the other type is the jealous ones. Those who don’t want to see you get ahead of them, who desire you to be just as unsuccessful as they are. But it’s up to you to decide what you truly desire and don’t listen to the naysayers, regardless of the reason they have for saying nay. 

But that means you must also pay close attention to the following quote: ‘Success is walking from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.’ Now that certainly has a ring of truth to it. For the only way to succeed is to move on from your failures, and though it’s difficult to always have enthusiasm after a failure, it’s important that you do have it, since that’s the only way you will ever get fully into your next attempt at success. And the next quote segues very nicely into that one: ‘Successful people do what unsuccessful people are not willing to do. Don’t wish it were easier; wish you were better.’ 

That first part is gospel truth: to be successful you have to do certain things that most people will not do; like getting up and trying again, and working long, tough hours, although you are not seeing any daylight on the project. Not to mention doing all sorts of menial and supposedly low-life jobs, just to forward the project. And yes, most of wish our tasks were easier, that’s the normal human attitude. But then, as they say, nothing good, or worth accomplishing is ever easy. And that’s generally true, no wonder our society today is so listless and lazy, with so many of us just satisfied to sit on our laurels and enjoy the easy life. 

But when a society gets lazy and listless and stops being creative and productive that’s when it begins to die, for a worthwhile life is only achieved through continual improvement and productivity. Consequently, this upcoming quote describes what a person or a society has to be about to not only survive but to prosper. ‘It’s not about standing still and becoming safe. If anybody wants to keep creating, they have to be about change.’ 

Yes, friends, we have to be in a continually creative frame of mind and accept that some change is necessary to move on up. But please, let’s not do like so many of us in our society are doing today, just embracing change for the sake of change, for not all change is productive, necessary or improves one’s life. And the advent of social media with its countless tentacles spread all over the world is just such one bad influence, for it gives the evil and wicked an even greater chance to spread their evil influence. 

True, it also gives the good and righteous a chance to spread their beliefs, but it so happens that because of our natural sinful nature and the broad way of the evil stuff, it is spreading more than the good stuff, which seeks the narrow path. And if we, the good and righteous want to have more influence in this world, we have to start doing much better than we currently are, and using the many tools available to us much more intently and purposefully. 

Remember some of Christ’s last words to His disciples: ‘All power (authority) is given unto me in heaven and earth. Go ye therefore, and teach (make disciples of) all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt. 28:18-20) Now, as followers of Jesus, His disciples and earthly representatives, that’s our life-long mission! We refer to it as the Great Commission, and it is indeed a great commission, as it comes directly from our Lord and Saviour, and it is a big, though very worthwhile task. 

And this explanation from the scholars is excellent. ‘The closing promise, though given to the apostles, is transmitted by every generation of believers (cf. John 17:20). Christ’s promise of His presence, I am with you always, guarantees the success of the church’s mission because it is really His mission carried out by His called-out disciples. The phrase unto the end of the world means until the end of the “age.” 

Therefore Christ’s empowerment of the church to evangelize the world is available in every age, even unto the end of the church age. In comparing the Great Commission with Jesus’ promise to continually build His church (Ch. 18), we must conclude that He intended His church always to be spiritually militant and evangelistically aggressive as we take His claims of Lordship to the entire world of our generation.’ 

Now my fellow believers, the important question is, are we being spiritually militant and evangelistically aggressive in our earthly walk? Now, if we are truthful, we will admit that we are definitely not as engrossed and purposeful in Christ’s work as we ought to be. So what’s the answer? It’s simple! To retake the world, we must become more spiritually militant and evangelistically aggressive, and at least match the efforts of the evil doers, until we eventually overpower them! 

That’s it in a nutshell my fellow saints. And it’s now up to us to rise up, with a strong sense of purpose and do our job, so that at the end, like Bruh Paul, we can truthfully say: ‘I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course (race), I have kept the faith:’ (2 Tim. 4:7) Yes friends, unless we can all truthfully say that at the end of our earthly days, then our lives would have been worthless in the cause of Christ! Much LOVE!

…it’s time for believers to rise up…to be bold and aggressive…in spreading the good news of Christ…                                                                    

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8                 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 5 June 2021 Matthew 28:19.

05 Jun 2021 Leave a comment

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

Matthew 28:19.     ‘Go ye therefore, and teach (make disciples of) all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

It’s a bright but cool Saturday morning with a strong breeze blowing through my area, however the weather people have issued a heat warning for today and the next few ahead. Temps are supposed to get up into the thirties. Bubba! Like the heatwave has begun…and so has the lively human activity on the streets, despite the lockdown is still mostly in place. 

People are walking without much on, cars and motorbikes are constantly revving up with their loud mufflers, unnecessarily disturbing the peace of the neighbourhood. At one stage in the early morning hours, I could swear that I heard car noises that indicated road racing not too far away from my house. But I guess that is all a part of the summertime activity. (smile) 

Anyway, let’s get down to our Saturday business, that of checking out the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And the first one says: ‘I cannot say whether things will get better if we change; what I can say is they must change if they are to get better.’ And that is the gospel truth my people, because things are so terrible now that if they don’t change, and change for the better, then God help us all yes! 

I don’t know if our world has ever been in such a controversial and strife filled state, even with all the supposed enlightened advancements we’ve made in our day. And unless it improves soon, implosion will be the obvious result, since we already have explosion with all the active volcanoes around. (smile) That brings us to this next quote: ‘Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.’ 

Ah mih people, so many of us have big dreams, desires and plans to change the world, but it’s not an easy task, and though our motivation is admirable, sometimes we just have to wise up and realize that the more important cause is to change our life. And ofttimes the sequence is changing ourselves before we try changing the world, because so many of us need changes in our lives before we can think about changing anyone else. 

And that’s where the following quote becomes important. ‘Change your life today. Don’t gamble on the future, act now, without delay.’ Now that is wisdom in spades my brethren! And the most important change we can ever need or have in our lives is receiving Christ Jesus as our Lord and Saviour! And if you haven’t done that yet, then you better had hurry up and do it today, right now, because Christ can come back any time, even today, and if you don’t have Him as the light of your life then you are going to end up in eternal damnation with Satan and all his wicked minions! 

Now is that the life you want to live after your physical bodies dies? I don’t think so. That means you must make the biggest decision of your earthly life right now, because it will affect where you spend eternity. Remember Jesus’ wise words: ‘No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and LOVE the other; or else he will hold (be loyal) to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.’ (Matt. 6:24) 

That’s the awesome truth friends: you cannot serve Almighty God and at the same time immerse yourself in accumulating the riches of the world. As the old people would say; is either one or the other. The beautiful fact is that you can get earthly wealth from God, if He so desires to bless you, but there’s no way to get God from earthly wealth! 

And so we come to this quote: ‘True life is lived when tiny changes occur.’ I don’t think that is completely true, because many of us need big changes in our lives if we are ever to get on the right track. But it is important that we make small adjustments over time, and that we do acknowledge their benefits in the betterment of our everyday circumstances. And I believe that’s one area in which a lot of believers are weak. We all look for the big miracles in our lives, which are usually few and far between, but we never pay attention to the many small miracles that the Lord performs in our lives each day that we are alive. 

Now that possibly derives from the fact that many of us don’t believe that the Lord is interested in the small, mundane things in our lives, and there is nothing further from the truth than that! Our God is actively interested in EVERY aspect of our lives, from the biggest to the smallest. He wants to get thoroughly involved in our business. 

And that’s exactly what many of us are afraid of. (smile) Some areas are okay, but not others. But friends, don’t you think that He knows the parts that we are trying to hide from Him? He certainly does, because He is omniscient, He knows everything. So trying to hide stuff from Him is pure foolishness. What He wants is for you to bring everything to Him in sincere prayer, be it good or bad. If you don’t take it to Him, then He can’t help you. 

And I believe that this last quote is the way to go. ‘I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.’ Yes friends, changing the world by ourselves is rather difficult, if not impossible, but spreading our diligent efforts across several areas, or even one area, can cause small, but important differences to be made. You’ll notice that’s how Jesus did it. He alone came down from heaven, and being in fashion as a man, He couldn’t go very far to spread His Word. So he got a few men together and taught them what He wanted them to teach others. 

Thus some of His last words to them. ‘Go ye therefore, and teach (make disciples of) all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt. 28:19-20) Then they did what he asked; went out and recruited others, and those others did the same, until now, two thousand years later, the Word of God has been spread over most of His universe, just like He desired. 

Strangely enough, speaking of it like that makes it resemble a pyramid scheme that’s become so prevalent and heartbreaking today, when used for evil purposes. But we all know that Jesus’ words were not designed for evil or heartbreak, but to give us a sincere hope and an eternal future with Him in heaven. 

And you know what, right here, we have two good examples of casting a stone across the waters to create many ripples. Yes, brother Anselm’s sending quotes to us, and then my sending them to others through the Bit, that’s certainly a method of casting a stone across the waters, hoping to create many ripples. And I do hope that we are successful in our small way, making a difference, by bringing hope and faith, as well as the peace and LOVE of Jesus to someone who needs it this Saturday morning! And it’s in Jesus’ name we pray! Much LOVE!

…changes…big or small…are of no use…unless Christ is involved in them…                                                            

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