Today’s Scrip-Bit 13 October 2013 Psalm 145:8

13 Oct 2013 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 145:8.    The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion: slow to anger, and of great mercy.

 
Oh Friends, our God is definitely the greatest yes! And I’m saying that for the umpteenth time because yesterday, after writing that I had nothing to say, was bereft of words, He kindly informed me that believers ALWAYS have something to say. And when I didn’t understand, like a patient teacher, He gently explained that whenever our mental apparatus shuts down, we can always testify.
 
Obviously I chuckled at hearing that information, but people, there is logic to it. We might not be able to come up with any new, fanciful stuff to enthral our listeners, but our personal testimony, what the Lord has already done in our lives, and is currently doing, doesn’t change or ever grow stale.
 
And in fact, personal testimony is the best way to project our faith, to bring others to Christ. We can know the Good Book from cover to cover, but that information is useless to all and sundry unless some aspect or aspects of it are occurring in our lives. That’s why it’s called a personal relationship with Christ.
 
The tough part though is that you cannot find out what Jesus is all about until you get personally involved with Him. That’s where faith and trust come in – plenty of both. And that’s why they call getting involved with Jesus a leap of faith! You don’t know what’s going to happen, because He has different plans for each of us, but you’re nonetheless willing to dive in heart first. 
 
As they say, you can’t learn to swim in shallow water, it must be deep enough for you to manoeuvre properly. So anyway, we now know that when our word source dries up, we can testify. (smile)
 
That brings us to our warm, wonderful and most encouraging Bit. ‘The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion: slow to anger, and of great mercy.’ And all God’s people gave Him a big shout of praise!
 
But that’s not all Friends, for Bruh David continues: ‘The Lord is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.’ (Ps.145:9) Even more assurance there Friends!
 
But here’s where our endeavours come in. ‘All thy works shall praise thee, O Lord; and thy saints shall bless thee. They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power, To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of his kingdom.’ (Ps.145:10-12)
 
Now that’s where we have to step back and view the reality of the current situation my brethren. Are we, God’s saints, speaking of His majesty and power, of His glorious kingdom, and also letting men know about His mighty acts down through the ages?
 
I strongly believe that we’re not doing it to the best of our ability, otherwise there wouldn’t be as many backsliders and unbelievers, and consequently our world wouldn’t be in the terrible mess that it’s in.
 
Now let’s turn to some scripture that confirms our Bit. The psalmist in Psalm 130 – My soul waiteth for the Lord – says with much wisdom and truth. ‘Let Israel hope in the Lord: for with the Lord there is mercy (LOVING-kindness), and with him is plenteous (abundant) redemption. And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.’ (Ps.130:7-8)
 
What glorious words of encouragement, my brethren! There’s certainly no doubting them!
 
Meanwhile, Isaiah, in chapter 55, God’s free offer of mercy to all, he also reassuringly declares: ‘Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.’ (Is.55:6-7)
 
Then, in one of the many instances when Israel was backsliding, the Lord commanded Jeremiah: ‘Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return thou backsliding Israel, saith the Lord; and I will not cause my anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith the Lord, and I will not keep anger (remain angry) for ever.
 
Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers (favours to foreign deities) under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith the Lord.’ (Jer.3:12-13)
 
Please note Friends, that it’s all well and good to come back to God, but we must acknowledge our transgressions with sincere repentance, and He will know it by searching our hearts.
 
And here are two verses from Psalm 86, where Bruh David is entreating the Lord to teach him to pray. ‘For thou Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee… But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, long-suffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth.’ (Ps.86: 5,15)  Bruh David certainly knew what he was talking about from personal experience.
 
Now listen to Joel, with a call to fasting and more repentance. ‘Therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning. And rend (tear) your heart, and not your garments, and turn (return) unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness (LOVING-kindness), and repenteth him of the evil (relents from doing harm.’ (Joel 2:12-13)
 
Ah mih people, NO OTHER GOD shows such grace and mercy towards repentant sinners!
 
Now here’s a note from the scholars I think we should share. ‘2:12-13. The customary way a Jew showed his grief was to tear his outer garment. This external sign could be meaningless. The tearing of the outer garment is useless, unless the heart is broken in repentance and contrition.’
 
And that’s the undeniable truth Friends! So though our God is wonderful, with all those glowing attributes, we still need to show Him true reverence, obeisance and obedience. For as the old people would say; it takes two to tango. We can’t expect to reap all of God’s goodness without doing our part. But sadly that’s the way a lot of us, supposed believers behave.
 
We must remember Friends that we’re in a covenant relationship with Almighty God, our Creator, Controller and Provider, and right now we need to step up to the plate and become better keepers of that covenant, for we are definitely backsliding. And as we’ve seen in all our scriptures, the Lord is only too willing to forgive and forget, if we turn back to Him in sincere repentance and heartfelt contrition. That’s heavenly wisdom! Much LOVE!
 
…a word to the wise is sufficient…
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 January 2013 Psalm 67:4

24 Jan 2013 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 67:4.     O let the nations be glad and sing for joy: for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon the earth.  Selah.
 
Oh Friends, the song of the day is, ‘I’m getting better. I’m getting better. Thank the Lord, I’m getting better!’ And the ole fella is actually beginning to feel more human than zombie. The cold and cough seem to be under control, though the fever is still trying to resist. But I believe we have finally broken its stubborn hold because twice yesterday I had to get up and change my T-shirt because it was soaking wet with sweat. I guess that’s what the ancients would call the fever breaking. Let’s hope that’s what it was. I’m still not up to snuff though, for I slept out most of yesterday, as has been the modus operandi this past week. But the good news is that I ate solid food for the first time and actually enjoyed it, causing me to regain a couple of the pounds that I’d lost, but I’ll take that trade-off anytime. I also managed to watch two periods of hockey. Still haven’t read the papers though, but there’s one situation that made me laugh. Now there are always oranges and tangerines in the house, but I usually pass on them simply because I’m too lazy to peel them. However in these past few days, have I ever been peeling oranges and tangerines, because they were the only things that really tasted palatable. As they say, if the Lord doesn’t get you one way, He’ll get you the other. But please note that our God is not an unjust or vengeful God, as our Bit so wisely proclaims. ‘O let the nations be glad and sing for joy: for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon the earth.  Selah.’ Yes Friends, our God is a God of righteousness and justice, but also a Deity who tempers His decisions with LOVING-kindness, mercy and forgiveness. As such, there is none other like Him! That’s why in a number of Psalms, that theme is firmly proclaimed. For example, in Psalm 93, the Lord is clothed with majesty, the psalmist declares without a doubt: ‘The Lord reigneth, he is clothed with majesty, the Lord is clothed with strength, wherewith he hath girded himself: the world also is established, that it cannot be moved (shaken). Thy throne is established from old: thou art from everlasting.’ (Ps.93:1-2) Meanwhile in Psalm 96, a call to praise God, the psalmist wisely advises us to: ‘Give (ascribe) unto the Lord, O ye kindreds of the people, give unto the Lord glory and strength. Give (ascribe) unto the Lord the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts. O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: fear (tremble) before him, all the earth. Say among the heathen (gentiles) that the Lord reigneth: the world also shall be (is firmly) established that it shall not be moved (shaken): he shall judge the people righteously. Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fullness thereof (all that is in it). Let the field be joyful, and all that is therein: then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice Before the Lord: for he cometh to judge the earth: he shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth.’ (Ps.96:7-13) Oh Friends, truer words have never been spoken! But unfortunately we are not doing any of those things today. Instead, our world is casting disparaging aspersions on the name of the ONE TRUE God, removing Him bit by bit from our society, and replacing Him with worship to man-made idols and other foolish men. Now I ask you, if man and his idols were so powerful and wise, would our world be in the catastrophic situation we’re currently in? Certainly not! But man has become so proud, so arrogant and full of himself that he now believes he no longer needs the help of an invisible God. Ponder this for a moment nuh Friends. How much of our everyday tasks can we actually accomplish by ourselves eh? Not much really. And oftimes we can’t even do it with the help of other men, but desperately need an invisible God, someone stronger and more powerful than us. That’s why I don’t understand how we can remove Jehovah God from our society when there’s so much evidence that under His guidance we prosper, and when we move away from Him we suffer immensely. But I guess we’re fooled and bedazzled by Lucifer’s ‘baubles, bangles and bright shining things.’ How often must we be reminded eh my people that all that glitters is not gold? NONE of Lucifer’s stuff is real. They’re just glossed over, just a facade to hide the ugly, lying, deceitful, evil intentions behind his attempt to get back at God for kicking him out of heaven. If he wasn’t so foolish in the first place to want to overthrow God, he’d still be sitting pretty in heaven. But he wasn’t all that wise and is now banished to walk the earth until the Lord chooses to do away with him for good in the lake of fire. Oh my people, is that where we want to end up? I doubt it very much. So please, I’m pleading with us, let’s get ourselves together and covenant once again with our Creator, so that we can avoid the ugly fate that’s eventually going to befall Lucifer and his evil minions. That’s truly wisdom at its zenith. Much LOVE!…he that hath ears to hear…let him hear…or else he’ll eventually feel…the justice of Almighty God…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 30 December 2012 Psalm 45:6

30 Dec 2012 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 45:6.        Thy Throne, O God, is for ever and ever; the scepter of thy kingdom is a right scepter.
 
Well Friends, it’s another new day on God’s great earth; the eve of New Year’s Eve! How are the party plans coming along? I hope they’re more interesting than mine, because the duchess and I have again decided to party at home, as we’ve done for the last few years. We must be getting old – but certainly not cold – (smile) since we just can’t be bothered with the hassle of dressing up and going out in the cold, especially when we now seem to have more snow around New Year’s Eve than Christmas Day. Then the parties that we went to were fairly far away from our house. The worse part though was after partying heartily, having to drive all the way back home, while keeping an eye out for Babylon, lurking around some corner to catch drinking drivers. It just doesn’t seem worth the headaches, and besides we’re quite content to ring in the New Year at home in whatever fashion we choose, then when we’ve had enough, just roll into bed. You certainly can’t beat that prescription for contentedness! (smile) The old people would possibly characterize that attitude as, after one time is two. But if you’re satisfied with your decision, and the situation is not ungodly or detrimental to anyone, then that’s your business. Whoever wants to handle the hassles and go out to party, let them, hopefully though with no ill effects afterwards. Anyway, enough of the partying stuff, we’re here to talk about our great and wonderful God. And our Bit describes His longevity and glorious majesty with unerring accuracy. ‘Thy Throne, O God, is for ever and ever; the scepter of thy kingdom is a right scepter (scepter of righteousness).’ Words of absolute truth, my people! Our God has been enthroned in the heavens since the beginning of time, and will still be entrenched there at the end. Thus it’s very important that mankind recognizes this fact and wisely and humbly accept it. For try as we may, we will never be able to get away from Him, or His statutes, His judgements and His dictates. That’s why it makes so much sense to simply accept His sovereignty and stop fighting Him. As Jesus told Bruh Paul when He knocked him down on the road to Damascus: ‘I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks (goads).’ (Acts 9:5) Here is how the scholars describe it: ‘Saul is depicted as a rebellious beast that fights against the prod of its master (cf.26:14). He is persecuting Jesus in that he is afflicting the body of Christ. When someone does something for or against a Christian, Jesus Christ not only knows but feels it just as we do (cf. Matt.25:35-40) He is moved with the feeling of our infirmities (Heb.4:15)’ Oh Friends, the same thing goes for us today. If Jesus desires to get our attention, it’s impossible to go against His prodding. I can tell you that from personal experience. So why don’t we just stop trying to fight His calling on our lives eh, since fighting is useless? The psalmist says it with great confidence: ”The Lord reigneth, he is clothed with majesty; the Lord is clothed with strength, wherewith he hath girded himself: the world also is stablished, that it cannot be moved (shaken). Thy throne is established of old; thou art from everlasting.’ (Ps.93:1-2) Even Jeremiah, in his time of great sorrow, admits in his Lamentations: ‘Thou, O Lord, remainest for ever; thy throne from generation to generation.’ (Lam.5:19) And the author of Hebrews, talking about the Son being superior to the angels, quotes our Bit and the verse after it, mixed up with other parts of the Old Testament, a favourite tactic of Bruh Paul. ‘But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God is for ever and ever: A scepter (ruler’s staff) of righteousness is the scepter of thy kingdom. Thou hast LOVED righteousness and hated iniquity (lawlessness); therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows (companions). And, thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands. They shall perish, but thou remainest: and they all shall wax (grow) old as doth a garment; And as a vesture (cloak) shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: But thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.’ (Heb.1:8-12) Oh my brethren, that says it all! And like we always like to do whenever possible, we’ll give Jesus the last word as He testifies to John in Revelations. ‘I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.’ (Rev.22:13) End of story Friends! So please, today, in this most appropriate Christmas season, at the advent of the year 2013, let’s be wise and seek Jesus and His everlasting kingdom nuh, as He so LOVINGLY desires us to do. It’s the only true way! Much LOVE!…whoever wants to live forever…must embrace Jesus and all that He stands for…before their earthly pilgrimage ends…