Today’s Scrip-Bit   9 May 2023 Colossians 3:13b.

09 May 2023 Leave a comment

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

Colossians 3:13b.      …if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.

Oh boy, is it possible for us to get two sunny days with temps in the mid-teens on two successive days in this spring season? I certainly hope so. And although we like the rain, but it’s intermittent character and the dark, cloudy, skies it brings, interspersed with a wimpy sun, doesn’t exactly exhilarate the senses (smile) And yes, although we do have Jesus who can alleviate our every mood swing, it’s still nice to have one strong situation or the other, not a li’l of this and a li’l of that. 

Now to help us curb that dissatisfaction, here is a poem from our One Year Book of Bible Verses with writings By Ruth Harms Calkin, most appropriately titled ‘Need of Patience.’ (smile) So please read with me: ‘O God How pointedly You speak to my heart when You say “You have need of patience… Remorsefully I acknowledge Your truth For there is nothing I need more. I am so easily disturbed, Lord So many little things annoy me. Patience is simply not a virtue of mine. I’m impatient with our neighbour Who mows his lawn but once every six weeks. I’m impatient with our newsboy Every time he misses our front porch. 

Yesterday a friend kept me waiting And I robed my impatience in self-pity. Shoes pushed under the bed An unrinsed coffee cup An overly detailed story Toys scattered on our lawn – How I murmur and fret. (Sometimes I explode.) I’m impatient with myself, Lord My foolish mistakes, my failures And often I’m impatient with You. I am like a petulant child Who insists on an answer – now. Yes, God, I have need of patience. But I will not be discouraged Nor will I continue to flog myself. Again, Your word speaks pointedly: “My God shall supply all your need…” The very need You know I have Is the very need You will supply. You will renew me in patience. In You there is hope!’ 

And that’s the indisputable truth friends! In our great and merciful, forgiving and LOVING God, there is indeed hope! There’s always hope to be found in Him, regardless of the circumstances. We just have to come to Him in all sincerity and truth! And do most of us ever need patience, especially in these times when our society demands immediate gratification? Yes, everything must be now for now, in this busy, stressful, fast food, hurried age, with almost instant communications and amazing amenities that lead us to think or believe we’re entitled to the easy life, and we want and expect it RIGHT NOW! 

But that’s the furthest thing from the truth my people. In the world you might get away with those expectations and demands, but in God’s kingdom, His economy, you certainly won’t, because He demands patience of His followers, and is a stickler for us waiting on His perfect timing. And believe me, He’s NEVER late. Sometimes it might seem so, but in reality, He’s always on time! Now, He might cut it somewhat tight, but if you look through and consider all the times you’ve depended on Him, though you might have been stressed to the max, waiting, He’s always showed up just in time to alleviate or neutralize your problem. 

And I can tell from personal experience that that is an acquired virtue. That last minute thing was something we always had difficulty with. We didn’t doubt that our problems would be solved, but the waiting to the last minute always got me exasperated with the Lord. And that’s the thing about patience in general, it doesn’t just happen overnight, it’s something that’s acquired over time, acquired by going through rough and tough situations and seeing them work out in your favour in the end. That’s the only way to build patience. 

And sadly, I found that out the hard way, when in my naivety I asked the Lord to give me the patience of Job. Now, we all know the serious, debilitating, life-changing circumstances Job went through, despite his supposed righteousness. But he didn’t curse the Lord like his wife invited him to. (Job 2:9-10) No, though he obviously queried his unfortunate circumstances, he remained faithful, and the Lord eventually blessed Him with even more than he had before. 

How many of us, given that terrible adversity, would have been able to say like Job did: ‘Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways (defend my ways) before him. He also shall be my salvation: for an hypocrite shall not come before him.’ (Job 13:15-16) Now those were indeed powerful words of faith in a time of unspeakable calamity. And not many, then or now, can muster it. But that’s the kind of faith and trust that our God expects, no, demands of us. 

In all and every circumstance, be it good or disastrous, He wants us to have undying faith, to rely on His amazing grace and mercy, to know and understand His great LOVE for us, and that NOTHING, no NOTHING can ever tear us apart from Him! And the scriptures associated with our poem today, come from Bruh Paul’s missive to the Colossians. Let’s hear the New Living Translation found in the book first, then we’ll read the real thing from the King James version. (smile)

 ‘Since God chose you to be holy people whom he LOVES, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. You must make allowances for each other’s faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.’ (Col, 3:12-13 NLT) Now that’s the basic truth of the scripture, but it sounds somewhat banal and wimpy. (smile) 

Now, here’s the real McCoy from the KJV. ‘Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies (tender mercies), kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing (bearing with) one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.’ (Col. 3:12-13 KJV) Now doesn’t that sound more like real scripture, with more punch that the earlier translation. (smile) Obviously I am biased towards the King James Version, but the truth is some of the other translations either water down the scripture or make it wordier and more longwinded, which makes it even more difficult to understand. 

Anyway, the long and short of the story is that as true believers we need to treat each other much better than we’re currently doing, with this verse being the crowning glory. ‘And above all these things put on charity (LOVE), which is the bond of perfectness.’ (Col. 3:14) And the scholars explain that here ‘LOVE is called the bond of perfectness, because it is the crowning grace completing the list of virtues required for perfectness or spiritual maturity. As a “bond” it binds all the other virtues together in harmony and unity.’ And so it does. 

Now, for those of us who are sincerely trying to live in LOVE, let’s go home declaring (yesss!!!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting all and sundry know to whom we belong, lock, stock and barrel. As one voice: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with my immediate neighbours, as well as with the whole wide world! Glory be!’ 

And having made that declaration (wow!!!) it’s now our bounden duty to go out and share the amazing LOVE and friendship of Christ with all we meet, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like do! Much LOVE!

… patience…only comes…through hardship and the passing of time… 

 Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ          

Today’s Scrip-Bit 1 July 2015 Psalm 103:8‏‏‏

01 Jul 2015 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 103:8.   The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous (abounding) in mercy (LOVING-kindness).

HAPPY  CANADA  DAY!

Happy Birthday Canada! On this 1st of July 2015, we’re a bright and sparkling one hundred and forty eight years old today! Wow! And the celebrations will be enormous! I began mine last night as you can see from the lateness of the Bit. (smile)

And why not eh? Canada has been good to me. It’s where I’ve spent the last forty two years and counting of my life. It hasn’t been easy, but it has certainly been interesting and rewarding. Like most other countries we’re on somewhat of a downward slide now, but by golly, it is still the best big country in the world! Glory Hallelujah!

In 1867 the British North America Act conferred some self-governing powers on Canada and she became a Dominion of Britain. Since then she has not looked back and has gone on to take her place as one of the leaders of the free world. Let’s hope that continues as time goes by.

Ohhh! Lest I forget later on, let me remind us right now about Granny’s wise words. ‘Sonny boy… remember that drunk or sober, please mind yuh business.’

Words of absolute wisdom my brethren! For we all know that when we get into celebrating, we tend to get a tad loose and that only gives the wily old fox Lucifer a chance to invade our souls. And we definitely don’t want to do that. So let’s just keep our wits about us in the celebrations today.

And since it’s Wednesday, let’s do some wailing nuh. On the count of three: one, two, three. ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday!

I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’

Yes my people, is it ever so good to be alive on this first day in July, although the temperature is only supposed to go up to something like 21, and it is a tad chilly and cloudy outside. The summer doesn’t look to be shaping up too good nuh. But why to worry eh? Our great God is in control and He knows our wants and needs.

Plus He has faithfully promised never to leave nor forsake us, so if the true summer weather is a bit tardy in coming, we just have to take it in stride and rely on His wonderful promise to bring us safely through our dark times in the valley of the shadow of death.

Therefore we can now unconditionally declare: ‘The Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is a mighty and magnanimous God! We will rest in peace, safety and joy in His holy and everlasting, LOVE, mercy and grace! Amen!’

And now let’s turn to our Bit which so wonderfully proclaims all that we’ve said so far. ‘The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous (abounding) in mercy (LOVING-kindness).’

Ah Friends, if our God didn’t possess all those glorious attributes, I don’t know, and fear to think what might have already become of us, with our truly disobedient and ungodly behaviour.

And as we’ve been doing for the last few days, let’s look at some scripture that shore up our Bit, beginning with Moses interceding with God for the people of Israel after they had foolishly rebelled against Him.

‘And now I beseech thee, let the power of my Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying, The Lord is long-suffering and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation.

Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.’(Num.14:17-19)

Oh Friends, Moses wasn’t as stupid as he claimed to be nuh. The Lord was about to destroy the Israelites for their rebellion, but Moses used God’s own words back at Him, those He had used to Moses when He passed before Him on Mt. Sinai, while getting the second version of the Ten Commandments.

And I like the logic he used on God: If He destroyed the Israelites, then the other nations would say it was because He was unable to bring them safely through the wilderness. And we all know that our God LOVES a challenge! (smile) Tell Him He can’t do something, and you know He’ll prove that He can.

And though the Lord pardoned the Israelites, He promised, ‘But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord.’ (Num.14:21) He rose to Moses’ challenge, and also declared that none of those who came out of Egypt and saw all His signs and wonders would step foot in the Promised Land. And so it was.

So my brethren, though our God is wonderful and merciful and kind, He won’t allow us to take advantage of His goodness and mercy, so please remember that there are consequences for continual disobedience.

Now hear Moses again, this time warning the Israelites that they were a holy people to the Lord and thus had great responsibilities. ‘Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that LOVE him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;

And repayeth them that hate him to their face, to destroy them: he will not be slack to him that hateth him (delay with those who hate Him), he will repay him to his face. Thou shalt therefore keep the commandments and the statutes, and the judgements, which I command thee this day, to do them.’ (Deut.7:9-11)

Oh Friends, we have it right there in black and white! We have also seen it in action down through the ages. So why do we in these unfaithful, ungodly and rather sinful times believe, or simply ignore the fact that we will not suffer God’s punishment for our boldfaced disobedience eh?

I assure us that we will, in God’s own time. He is indeed long-suffering and will give us plenty of rope, in the hope that we will wake up and smell the roses, or on the other hand, to hang ourselves.

Now let’s end with these words of absolute truth, as spoken by the great prophet Daniel in his prayer for his people, Israel. ‘To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against him.’ (Dan.9:9)

And that’s no lie Friends! But we can’t keep on rebelling and keep expecting mercy and forgiveness forever. It’s not realistic from a holy, righteous and just God, and it will not happen.

So please let’s take the necessary precautions and turn once more in confession and repentance to the One who created us, the universe and all therein. That is the zenith and epitome of wisdom. Much LOVE!

…disobedience and rebellion NEVER pays…regardless of who or what we think we are…

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 27 November 2013 Deuteronomy 28:1

27 Nov 2013 Leave a comment

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

Deuteronomy 28:1.    And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the Lord thy God will set thee high above all nations of the earth.
 
Ah mih people, in this rough and rugged world, when it’s not one thing, it’s certainly another yes. Now yesterday my allergies were bothering me, but I beat them off. Today though, I couldn’t get up. Like the ole body was more tired than I thought.
 
However, as the old people would say; better late than never. So if the Bit’s a tad late, please bear with the ole fella, let your tender mercies and forgiveness, your Christian compassion come to the fore, as you remember that he’s only human and thus very fallible. (smile) And that’s why they say B.S. baffles brains!
 
But I have an interesting acclamation to share today. It comes from Bubba Joel (Joel Osteen), so those of you who deal with him might have already seen it, but for the many who don’t, it’s very useful to share.
 
And Bubba Joel excitingly declares in the title: ‘TODAY IS MY DAY! God has destined me to be a barrier breaker! He created me to be uncontainable. I have talent and potential given to me by the Creator of the universe. There are seeds of greatness inside of me. Today, I choose to break free from a limited mindset and enlarge my vision.
 
Today, God is taking me places I’ve never even dreamed of before. Today, God is fulfilling His purpose and destiny in my life. Today, I will experience His favour like never before in every area of my life.’
 
Yes Friends, we all need to enlarge our vision and change our mindset to one that expects God’s favour, His goodness and mercy, every day of our lives, otherwise we’re more than likely to short-change ourselves.
 
Oh I know that lots of people cry down what’s generally called prosperity and positive thinking, but why not embrace it instead eh? Jesus said that He came to earth so that we could have life, and have it more abundantly. (John 10:10)
 
So what does that mean eh? It surely doesn’t mean we should live poor, downtrodden lives. But neither does it mean that every believer will become filthy rich in worldly goods and live high on the hog, as some preachers preach, and some believers believe. I think it means that generally speaking, true believers will live a decent, above average life.
 
For as our Bit so wonderfully puts this everlasting promise of our great and wonderful God: ‘And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the Lord thy God will set thee high above all nations of the earth.’
 
As usual Friends, our God’s pronouncements are plain and simple: obey, and you’ll be blessed. ‘And all these blessings shall come upon thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God.’ (Deut. 28:2)
 
Ah mih people, how wonderful He is eh! He even goes on to spell out in more detail, the many fabulous blessings He has in store for us, if we obey His rules.
 
‘Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field. Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body (offspring), and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine (cattle), and the flocks of thy sheep. Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store (kneading bowl). Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out.
 
The Lord shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten (defeated) before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways. The Lord shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.’ (Deut.28:3-8)
 
Oh my brethren, what’s in that not to understand eh? But being foolish, rebellious, prideful, think we know it all, trusting in our own sub-par provision, we’ve turned from the Lord. And what’s the result? We’re obviously reaping what we’ve so stupidly sown with our disobedience; poverty, sickness, economic distress, war, strife, and all other sorts of disasters and calamities.
 
But do you think we’ll even for a moment sit down and seriously ponder the situation? Oh no! Because Beelzebub has us in grip, we’re so firmly ensconced in the palms of his hands, we can’t escape his evil hold, for we’ve sold our souls to him for the worthless treasures of this soon to be destroyed world.
 
And we’ll end with this simple, straightforward, but oh so important verse of scripture. ‘The Lord shall establish thee a holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the Lord thy God, and walk in his ways.’ (Deut.28:9)
 
Oh Friends, it can’t get any simpler and more straightforward than that! So please, today, as true believers in Jesus Christ, let’s all pluck up our courage, pick ourselves up from wherever we’ve fallen, and believe God for a good and decent life, if we follow His dictates. 
 
And it’s not like we haven’t seen it played out just as He said, all down through the centuries; from the days of Jewish prosperity, to their calamities when they disobeyed, right down to our earlier prosperity when we were a more godly people, to our now divisive, disaster and strife torn world, as we’ve become very idolatrous and disobedient.
 
So it’s not like the words of the Good Book haven’t been played out and found to be true. It’s just that we’re obstinate, rebellious, prideful and foolish.
 
So please my people, let’s try and make some wise changes nuh, once again becoming obedient to God’s Word, starting TODAY! That’s wisdom of the most immense proportions. Much LOVE!
 
…if you want to disobey…then know that you’ll surely pay…and pay large too…