Today’s Scrip-Bit 29 November 2012 2 Corinthians 5:7

29 Nov 2012 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

2 Corinthians 5:7.     For we walk by faith, not by sight:

Oh Friends, I saw a most beautiful sight when I came out on the porch about 5.30 this morning! Looking out to the western sky, towards Store Bay, hanging a little above the trees, was a big, bright, beautiful full moon. I had to stand there and stare at it for a few moments, in awe of our God’s marvellous creation. Oh my people, I don’t care what anybody says nuh, but there are too many mysterious and highly engineered things in our world for them all to be products of mere evolution. Some magnificent Being of outstanding wisdom must have designed and created them. The forces of nature work, and have worked over endless time, too perfectly and precisely, like clockwork, for there not to be some awesome hand involved in their creation and constant operation. And that magnificent Being who created the universe and all therein, all those wonderful and mysterious things we’re talking about, is none other than the MOST HIGH GOD JEHOVAH; the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! A God to whom we ought to bow down to and worship with much respect,  reverence and awe, because He not only deserves but also expects and desires it from His greatest creation; the human being. And to show how our God moves mysteriously and wonderfully, a green parrot just showed up on my porch saying ‘hello, hello!’ in a raspy voice. He escaped from the neighbouring compound and refused to be easily caught. So how can we not believe that there’s a Being higher and mightier than us eh? It’s all these little wonders that add up and give us the true perspective of the God of infinite wisdom, LOVE, mercy and forgiveness who rules our individual lives, as well as the natural habitat that surrounds us. Oh Friends, have you ever sat down and truly considered how intricately and precisely made you are? If not, please do that today. Check out how all the different parts of our body, both external and internal, of different sizes, shapes and functions, work in perfect precision and sync. Now that kind of perfect engineering couldn’t have just happened by chance. It must have been well thought out and then put into action by some rather ingenious Being, who just for that ingenuity, is worthy of being served and worshipped. But my brethren, the Lord God Jehovah has done, is doing, and will do above and beyond just creating us. He’s also involved in guiding, LOVING, forgiving and being merciful to all who call upon Him in true faith, and believe that He is who He says He is; the great I AM, the Lord of Lords, and King of Kings, existing from the beginning of time till eternity. Now that’s the quandary too many of us find ourselves mired in. We must see, feel and touch before we are able to believe. That’s why Bruh Paul declares to the Corinthians in our Bit: ‘For we walk by faith, not by sight:’ Our great God desires us to walk in supreme trust and confidence in Him, that’s why He’s imbued us with the characteristics that we possess. And He’s also shown, right down through the ages, that He is absolutely faithful and trustworthy to those who adore Him and are faithful to His way of life. He even sent His One and Only Son Jesus to die for us, so that in our horribly sinful state we could be reconciled to Him, by simply believing that Jesus was His Son and the only way to come to Him. Only a truly caring, exceedingly magnanimous Being would do something so wonderful for undeserving creatures. Now hear these words of absolute truth from Bruh Paul to the church at Rome: ‘For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience (perseverance) wait (eagerly) for it.’ (Rom.8:24-25) Yes mih people, Hope stems from being able to comprehend stuff that we’re unable to see, stuff that’s in the future, so to speak. It’s just not logical to hope for something you can see or touch, since hope is the creation of a desire, a longing for something that’s presently outside of our reach, our scope, our physical grasp. But spiritually, we see it through our eyes of faith, and eagerly wait for it to come to pass, with patience and perseverance. And that’s well put by Bruh Paul in Chapter 11 of Hebrews, that famous treatise on Faith. He opens the chapter thus: ‘Now faith is the substance (realization) of things hoped for, the evidence (conviction) of things not seen.’ (Heb.11:1) Words of consummate truth Friends! For as we’ve already said, logically speaking, it’s impossible to hope for what you already see or possess. And here’s some enlightenment on that verse from the scholars. ‘Verse 1 is not so much a definition of what faith is, as it is a description of what faith does (cf. 11:6). Two truths concerning its activity are stated here. First, faith provides substance (Gr. hypostasis). Though broad in its usage, this Greek word normally has the meaning of “assurance” in the New Testament (cf. 3:14; 2 Cor.9:4;11:17) and this seems to be the best sense here. Second, faith provides evidence (Gr. elegchos). It is evidence in the sense of proof that results in conviction. The difference between assurance and evidence would be minimal were it not for the phrase qualifying each: of things hoped for and of things not seen. The first involves future hope; the second involves present realities that are unseen. The first includes the hope of the resurrection, the return of Christ, and the glorification of the saints. The second involves unseen realities, such as the forgiveness of sin through Christ’s sacrifice and the present intercession of Christ in heaven. Hope is faith relating to the future; conviction is faith relating to the present.’ By the way, the devil and his wife are fighting for the fish bone or ham bone, or something so. That’s what the ole people would say when the rain starts falling in a cloudless blue, sunny sky, as it just began doing. (smile) Anyway Friends, I know that the scholars’ explanation above is a bit heavy, but please  take your time, study and understand it, for that’s the only way to grow in the Word of our God. And we’ll end with some more memorable, encouraging and enlightening words from Bruh Paul on the subject. ‘But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. (Heb.11:6) Yes Friends, today, let’s ponder the levels of our hope and faith in Christ Jesus, and do our best to raise them nuh, so that we can walk even stronger and more faithfully in His Name. I pray this in Jesus’ Name. Amen. Much LOVE!…the believers quest for faith…to hope…to hope…and yet to hope…with eager anticipation…and patience… Visit the Scrip-Bit Blog at https://randyobrien50.wordpress.com.

Today’s Scrip-Bit 21 November 2012 Genesis 9:13

21 Nov 2012 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Genesis 9:13.   I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.

Morning Friends! From the porch of my cosy cottage at Store Bay, in the cool morning air, surrounded by an abundance of colourful flora, I write these words of peace, LOVE and good health. Oh my people, you wouldn’t know what joy it is to be awakened in the early morning hours by cocks-a-crowing, birds-a-singing, and dogs-a-barking! And though at times the noise can be a bit disconcerting, especially when you’re not ready to get up, it sure is preferable to waking up in a cold, dark environment with none of God’s creations sweetly singing His praises. And since my sojourn on God’s Little Acre is short, I have to enjoy it to the fullest. Yesterday, after writing the Bit, I walked out to Store Bay, yes it’s only a five minute walk from my cosy cottage, and had a nice dip in its calm, beautiful azure blue, highly regenerative waters. Yes Friends, without a doubt, the best therapeutic remedy for any and all aches and pains is good, ole sea water! God’s considerate provision for His people! After that I went shopping for some groceries, and are they ever expensive, in terms of T&T dollars. Later in the evening I hung out with a couple of old fogeys like myself, reminiscing about some of the colourful and eccentric characters who lived in the capital, Scarborough, during our youth. And believe me, there were quite a few colourful characters hanging around our town back then. And the beauty of it all, is that though their physical appearance, emotional stability and economic situation were at the bottom of the totem pole, their brain power was amazing. Some of the wisdom that would pour out of their souls was truly astounding. It’s reputed that a couple of them had been teachers fallen on hard times, and their vocabulary certainly attested to that possibility. Ah Friends, luckily for us the Lord woke me at a reasonable time this morning, so that I can write the Bit early o’clock, because later on in the day, I have a christening to attend, and it’s very doubtful if I’ll be in any fit shape to write anything sensible after that. (smile) So here goes. Our Bit is the same as yesterday: ‘I do set my bow (rainbow) in the cloud, and it shall be for a token (sign) of a covenant between me and the earth.’ Now just before our Bit, the Lord spoke these memorable and most important words to Noah after the flood receded. ‘And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. And God said, This is the token (sign) of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations.’ (Gen. 9:11-12) And that token, that sign, as our Bit declares, was a rainbow in the sky. And the scholars say this in their footnote: ‘This covenant involved the dispensation of human government, with humanity governing itself. Man was responsible to govern the world for God. The governing covenant of this era was the Noahic covenant (v 11). Under it, man’s relationship to the earth and to the order of nature was confirmed (vv 2-11), human government was established, and God promised never again to use a universal flood to judge the world (vv 11-17). The failure of man under this dispensation culminated in the building of the tower of Babel and resulted in the judgement of the confusion of tongues. (cf. 11:1-3,7).’  So what else is new eh? Man’s failure to keep our covenants with God down through the ages has been causing us pain and discomfort from day one with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. And even after God’s unfathomable grace that allowed Jesus to pay our sin debt in full, we still can’t get it through our thick skulls that obedience to Almighty God is the only way to live a good, peaceful, LOVING and prosperous life on this mish mash earth. Anyway, Friends, I’m not getting in to any haranguing about our foolish pride and rebellion today. (smile) Rather, I’m just going to share some scriptures that indicate how important a rainbow still is in our relationship with our Creator. And the first scripture comes from the prophet Ezekiel, where he declares his vision of God’s glory. ‘As the appearance of the bow (rainbow) that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spake.’ (Ezek.1:28) That goes to show the lack of words to really describe God’s glory, but He, in His infinite wisdom, gives us some indication of the brightness of His glory in the rainbow with its wondrous colour scheme. Then we’ll jump all the way to the end times, where John tells us about what he saw around God’s throne in the heavens. ‘And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine (sardis) stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight (appearance) like unto an emerald.’ (Rev.4:3) Oh Friends, the gems and the rainbow show God’s glory, and reminds us that it will always be an integral part of the reflection of His awesome, colour, light and beauty! And further on in Revelation, when John talks of the angel and the little book, he begins the chapter thus: ‘And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire.’ (Rev.10:1) Yes my brethren, even in the painful times to come, the rainbow will still be involved in the activities of Almighty God! So please, whenever we see a rainbow, which is not too often, let’s stand and admire it, and contemplate the awesome power of our wonderful God, who created such beautiful imagery to show His amazing LOVE and care for mankind; His most precious creation. And a minute ago, the same black rooster that gave me a raucous cockadoodle-do greeting yesterday afternoon, was on the other side of the fence, pecking at the ground and clucking in a low tone. Then he came in to the yard and strutted across the lawn, as though he owned it, with his bright red plumage above his beak standing proud in the early morning sunshine. Now what can be better than that eh Friends? Only heaven! Much LOVE!…is it plane…is it a bird…NO…it’s a rainbow… 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 19 September 2012 Proverbs 12:10

19 Sep 2012 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Proverbs 12:10.     A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast: but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.

Oh Friends, oh Friends, please listen to me this morning. From now until forever, if you or any of your family members are leaving anywhere to go out on the roads, the killing fields we call highways, please hug and kiss each other and totally express your LOVE for each other, for in these crazy times you might not be able to do it again, except to a lifeless body in a funeral home. I’m saying this because I got a scare yesterday morning. About forty-five minutes after the Duchess left home to go to work, I got a call saying that she was in an accident. Luckily it was only a bumper bender and she wasn’t injured, but with these things you never know, for when metal, or rather fibreglass hits fibreglass, anything is possible. Apparently someone ran in to the back of the car behind her, and in the dark, rainy morning stop and go traffic, that one then ran into the back of her car. The saddest part of this whole story Friends is that my wife was going to work a little earlier than normal so she could relieve a co-worker to attend a funeral for one of her friends. Apparently this friend’s car conked out on her on the highway, everything was dead, not even the emergency flashers were working. It seems she called her husband who advised her to call 911, and he would come to get her. But lo and behold, by the time the poor man got there, a large garbage truck had already run over her little Volkswagen Passat and claimed her fairly young life. Ah Lord eh! It’s a sad fact that Ontario is a car producing province, which means we’re in the business of selling as many cars as possible, but that also means there are also way too many cars on our roads, with too many inexperienced, doh care drivers. Just to put that in perspective, the Duchess said that there were four other accidents in the same vicinity and time as hers, probably caused by motorists looking at another accident on the other side of the highway. Why do we do that eh? I see it all the time; the side of the road with the accident is moving faster than the other side, because all the people over there are slowing down to gawk and stare at the accident. That only causes more accidents! Ah mih people, I don’t know the answers to all the questions I’m posing here, but I do know that we do need some good answers, and we need them quickly too, otherwise our highways will get even worse than they are right now. Anyone on the highway these days is in serious danger; what with the speeding drivers changing lanes so unsafely and stupidly. Just last week I saw one cut across three lanes, from the fast lane to the slow, then cut back across to the fast, only to get a couple of car lengths ahead of his original position. And when yuh really need Babylon (the police) to be patrolling the highways and curb some of these excesses, they are never around. Then there are the tires that fall of the big trucks, jump over guard rails and into innocent persons windshields, or the fully loaded transport truck that falls over an overhead bypass and crushes another innocent victim on the road below. Or the drunk driver, going the wrong way and eventually crashing headlong into a van going the right way, killing most of the family members. And there are all sorts of other highway accident stories, many of which could have been prevented, but unfortunately were not, causing untold tragedy to many families. So my people, I implore us to truly get connected with the family members and friends we dearly LOVE, and share that LOVE and intimacy as often and as long as possible, because in this current rat race we so nicely term life, we never know if and when, we’ll ever see them alive again, when one or all of us go through the doors of our homes, work or playgrounds on to the death traps we call roads. And having gotten all of that off my chest, let’s look at our Bit: ‘A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast: but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.’ Basically what that means my brethren is that a righteous man is kind to animals, while a wicked man is cruel to the dumb animals in his charge. In fact, some people treat their animals better than they do their children or other family members. Now we should note that the edicts for treating animals kindly came down long ago from the Lord Himself, through Moses. Listen to him. ‘If a bird’s nest chance to be before thee in the way in any tree, or on the ground, whether they be young ones, or eggs, and the dam (mother) sitting upon the young, or upon eggs, thou shalt not take the dam with the young. But thou shalt in any wise let the dam go, and take the young with thee; that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest prolong thy days.’ (Deut.22:6-7) According to the scholars, the prohibition forbidding the taking of both mother and young, or eggs from the nest was designed to protect the food supply of the Israelites. Yuh see Friends, there was a lot of wise and brilliant planning that went into the design our world, it just didn’t explode with all it’s wonders from thin air, as some would have us believe. Anyway, since I understand that our attention spans are barely three minutes long now, and getting shorter, (smile) we’ll conclude here for today, since the rest of what I have to say on this topic will definitely run too long. So tomorrow, God willing, we’ll continue with it. Till then, please walk safely with the Lord, and remember to hug and kiss all those you LOVE and cherish, truly let them know the depths of your feelings for them. Till we meet again, in Jesus’ Name: Much LOVE!…life’s so fleeting and uncertain…we need to be constantly showing LOVE…to those we LOVE…
 
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 1 June 2012 Acts 1:5

01 Jun 2012 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Acts 1:5.     For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many day hence. 
 
Oh Friends, it’s Friday! Friday June the 1st to boot! Another month has quickly come and gone! But today, instead of only singing ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ the people in my area are also shouting: ‘All praise to our heavenly Father, for He has finally sent some blessed heavenly water upon the earth!’ Yes Friends, some early morning rain has finally fallen around here. Not a whole lot, but all God’s creations; fauna, flora, earth and humans are indeed thankful for it. Thanks too for your prayers, which assuredly help. And for all His LOVING-kindness to undeserving man, let’s give our great God another shout of appreciation nuh! And all God’s people gratefully shouted: ‘Thank You Lord!’ Now since we’re in such a joyful frame of mind (smile) let’s chant our Friday Chant with much enthusiasm. As one 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 mih people, it’s the weekend, and we free from labour, at least outside labour, for two whole, big days. Wow! Please, let’s use that time wisely. Now turning to our Bit: ‘For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many day hence.’ Oh Friends, I know some of you are tired hearing about the Holy Spirit, but please don’t minimize its importance in our lives, because it is the engine of Jesus which works in us, drives us to live for and like Him. If we ignore the power of the Spirit, we’re also ignoring Jesus, and thus not receiving the full benefits of His sacrificial death. In fact, the more you become intimate with the Spirit, the more you become intimate with Jesus, and the better your life will be, for the Spirit was specifically granted to us as Jesus’ divine presence and guide for earthly living. Today I want to point out the importance of the Holy Spirit in the life of one particular early believer – Stephen. We first read about him in Acts 6, where the apostles needed to get away from the everyday hustle and bustle of running a church and become more involved in actually spreading the gospel. In light of this, they chose seven men to look after the church’s administration. Stephen was one of them. ‘And they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost…’ (Acts 6:5) At that time Jerusalem was awash with believers and much talk about the gospel, with the Holy Spirit playing a major role. The Good Book says: ‘And Stephen full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people. Then there arose certain of the synagogue…disputing with Stephen. And they were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit by which he spake. (Acts 6:8-10) Note the importance of the Spirit in his preaching. Unable to reason successfully with Stephen, these evil men bribed others to say they had heard him blaspheme, and he was subsequently arrested. A trumped up charge of blasphemy seems to have been the only way to get a believer arrested in those days. But our God moves in such mysterious and amazing ways, that when Stephen was brought before the council, the Good Book says: ‘And all that sat in the council, looking steadfastly on him, saw his face as it has been the face of an angel.’ (Acts 6:15) Then Stephen rose up, and in his defence gave a marvellous speech outlining Jewish history and all it’s subsequent hypocrisy, corruption and atrocities down through the ages. He really lit into the council. (Acts 7:2-53) It’s a must read my people! But then, when the council couldn’t take his withering truth any longer, for ‘they were cut to the heart (furious) and they gnashed on (at) him with their teeth. But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God. Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord. And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man’s feet, whose name was Saul. And they stoned Stephen, (as he was) calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.’ (Acts 7:54-60) Oh Friends, that’s the enormous power the Holy Spirit can generate in a believer who is truly filled with it! Let’s pray and ponder today, that all believers will come to know and glorify the Holy Spirit as much as Stephen did, and thus be able to bring others to Christ through his personal testimony. Oh my brethren, it’s obvious that the evil, ungodly rulers of this sinful world cannot handle the power and truth of the gospel that’s preached through the hardworking Holy Spirit, so let’s keep on preaching it nuh! Much LOVE!…believers are only as powerful…as the intimacy they have…with the Holy Spirit…