Today’s Scrip-Bit   8 August 2022   Daniel 11:32b.

08 Aug 2022 Leave a comment

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

Daniel 11:32b.      …but the people that do know their God shall be strong and do exploits (take action).

It’s time to hit the road friends, as we get about the Lord’s business on this Monday morning that holds so much promise if we live up to our godly potential. Yes, we’ve had ample rest, relaxation, revelation and renewal, which should make us hungry, excited, can’t wait to get into the spiritual battle out there and fight the good fight for Jesus! As the Good Book so rightly declares in Daniel. ‘And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt (pollute) by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong and do exploits (take action). (Dan. 11:32) 

Oh mih bredrin, that’s us he’s referring to there; ‘the people that do know their God.’ Wow! It’s exactly what we were just saying, that we can’t wait to get out into the world and fight the devil mano-a-mano on Christ’s behalf! We have all the tools to conquer the enemy, including the backing of the mighty Holy Spirit, we just have to want it badly enough. And after all that Jesus has suffered and sacrificed for us, it ought to be a no brainer for us to come up to scratch, to step up boldly and courageously to the plate and mow down the enemy in His marvellous name. 

The problem though is that too many of us supposed believers are either too afraid of the enemy, or just don’t care enough about Jesus and His most worthwhile cause to sacrifice some of our time, talent, treasure and energy. But we do want to participate in the good things that His death and resurrection have made possible. And yes, when we believe on Jesus, our name will be written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, and we’ll probably go to heaven, but that’s only the beginning and end points of the story. 

However, there is also a middle portion, which is what intimidates or scares most of us, because it involves us becoming Christ like, conforming to Christ’s character and godly habits and also helping others to seek salvation through Him. It’s like Bruh Paul wrote to the church at Rome. ‘For whom he (God) did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the first born among many brethren.’ (Rom. 8:29) 

And all that means is that from the beginning of time, God decided that all those who decided to believe in His Son, Jesus Christ would go through a training period to become like Him, so we could all be the wonderful children of God, with Christ as the first born. Meanwhile, to the church at Corinth Bruh Paul wrote: ‘But we all with open (unveiled) face beholding as in a glass (mirror) the glory of the Lord, are changed (transformed) into the same image from glory to glory, even by the Spirit of the Lord.’ (2 Cor. 3:18) 

Oh, it’s indeed a lifelong process in which the Holy Spirit is engaged, it doesn’t happen overnight, because it involves changing our inherent sinful nature to Christ’s godly temperament. It’s not easy, and we must do things like die to the flesh, die to ourselves, take up our cross and follow Christ, while giving up many of the ungodly things we did before we knew Him as Lord and Saviour. 

Yes, for many of us that transition can be very difficult, but with Jesus’ help, through the leading and guidance of the Holy Spirit it’s very doable. But we need to be willing to make the sacrifices necessary to do it. And it does call for sacrifices, as Jesus plainly tells us in the gospel of John, when He says: ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) 

And so He has my fellow believers. He defeated hell, death and the grave when He died on Good Friday then rose again on Easter Sunday, trampling on the devil and his evil followers, clearing the way for us to also have salvation and eternal life. And while we are becoming transformed, we are also expected to spread the good news of Christ to others and encourage them to come to know Him too. But that’s better done by example, by the godly action they see in our lives, rather than just by our talking a good talk, which we are very adept at. (smile) 

So you see friends, becoming a Christian, saying a prayer, believing it, and thereby accepting Christ as Lord and Saviour is indeed the easy part, for salvation is a free gift of God, so that none of us can boast about what we’ve done or not done. Living the life of a true believer is the difficult aspect, with all its ups and downs, pain and sorrow, and hard times that seem more than the good ones. But if we’re serious, and follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we’ll do marvellously. 

And why is that you ask? The answer is very simple. Because Jesus doesn’t ask you to do more than you can handle, and He also gives you the tools to do whatever He desires. All that’s left for us to do is to stay close and intimate with Him, and don’t be afraid. Yes. I know it’s all easier said than done, but the only way you’ll ever experience His warm and wonderful LOVE is by jumping right into the deep end and trusting Him to save you. (smile) After that, you’ll be completely hooked, without a doubt or a fear. 

And to stay close and intimate with God, we must use the communication method of prayer that He developed for that purpose. So, let’s do that right now nuh, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn. Altogether 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 to get positive answers to our prayers, we must now show positive motives and true godly behaviour, not just lip service, because the Lord reads our hearts before he answers our prayers. Much LOVE!

…the Christian life is not for the weak or faint of heart…but the LOVE of Jesus…transforms the weak into the strong… 

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   1 August 2022 Psalm 7:8.

01 Aug 2022 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 7:8.      The Lord shall judge the people: judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness, and according to mine integrity that is in me.

And then it was Monday again. But thank the Lord, in this goodly land of Canada, many of us don’t have to worry about work because it’s a civic holiday. In Ontario, it’s called Simcoe Day, celebrating the life and times of John Graves Simcoe, the first Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada in 1791 when the Province of Ontario was created, and Toronto was then known as York. 

This holiday on the first Monday in August also provides a good ending for the Caribana Celebrations, with many of the visitors on their way back home, after having a rollicking good time, but with many still here to take in the numerous last lap festivities. So you can imagine what’s happening tomorrow when the work week kicks in again…sick calls galore… Supervisors will possibly be pulling out their hair over the shortage of workers, but there’s not much they can do about it, because it’s just the nature of the beast. Plenty partying will also bring plenty tiredness and therefore plenty unavailability for work. (smile)  

That brings us to these interesting words of our Bit from Psalm 7 – A prayer for deliverance – as Bruh David implores the Lord. ‘The Lord shall judge the people: judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness, and according to mine integrity that is in me.’ (Ps. 7:8) Now many of us will say that asking the Lord to judge us before the official judgement day is going a tad too far. Why? Because we know that our level of righteousness and integrity are way below par and are afraid to face the Lord in judgement now, hoping that by the final day we would be in a better position. (smile) 

But friends, the whole purpose of our Christian existence is to live a life that’s pleasing to Almighty God ALL THE TIME! Not simply try and clean it up just before we die. The point is that if we are living a sincere and half-decent Christian life, we won’t be afraid of going before the Lord. We will never be perfect, and He knows that, but it‘s all about the trying, trying to live every day to please Him, and thus earn rewards in heaven, and not have to answer too many difficult, embarrassing and soul crushing questions on the judgement day. (smile) 

And I guess that’s one of the things the Lord liked about Bruh David, he wasn’t afraid to come before Him with anything, despite his less than stellar living at times, which is putting it mildly, for we can instead say, his totally sinful and abominable moments. It’s also very interesting to note that he made those uncomfortable remarks to God three other times in his writings. Listen to them. 

In Psalm 26, he opens by crying out to God: ‘Judge (vindicate) me, O Lord; for I have walked in mine integrity: I have trusted also in the Lord; therefore I shall not slide (slip). Examine me, O Lord, and prove (try) me: try (test) my reins (mind) and my heart. For thy LOVING-kindness is before mine eyes: and I have walked in thy truth.’ (Ps. 26:1-3) Oh my people, how wonderful it would be if we were able to make such a remarkable request eh! But, unfortunately, many of us know that we are nowhere near that position, so we obviously shy away from such petitions. 

Meanwhile, in Psalm 35 – A prayer for rescue from enemies – Bruh David again asks for vindication against his enemies. ‘Judge (vindicate) me, O Lord my God, according to thy righteousness, and let them not rejoice over me.’ (Ps. 35:24) That certainly speaks to his enormous trust in the God of his forefathers and his confidence in the quality of life he was living. I don’t know how many of us today would be bold and confident enough to go to God and tell Him: ‘Lord vindicate me against my enemies because you know I’m living a righteous life that deserves it.’ 

Then in Psalm 43 – A prayer for deliverance from the ungodly, he opines: ‘Judge (vindicate ) me, O God, and plead my cause against an ungodly nation: O deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man. For thou art the God of my strength: why dost thou cast me off? Why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy? O send out thy light and thy truth: let them lead me; let them bring me unto thy holy hill, and to thy tabernacles. Then will I go unto the altar of God, unto God my exceeding joy: yea, upon the harp will I praise thee, O God my God. Why art thou cast down, O my soul? And why art thou disquieted within me? Hope in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance (my salvation), and my God.’  (Ps. 43:1-5) 

Ah friends, yuh see what happens to us when we have a heart filled with sincere LOVE for God? Though our lives might be far from right, we are not afraid to go to God with our problems. And that’s exactly how Bruh David functioned. Despite his many, faults, foibles and frailties, he never stayed away from or feared going to God with his problems. And that’s exactly how we ought to be in these very deceitful, disastrous and trying times, not afraid to consult and communicate with our wonderful Creator. 

So, let’s take this marvellous opportunity to go to Him in confidence right now nuh, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, laying out our petitions and problems before His heavenly throne. As one sincere and steadfast voice. ‘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!’ 

Now it’s time for us to go out and turn from our evil ways! Much LOVE!

…there is no fear in LOVE…perfect LOVE casts out all fear… (1 John 4:18) 

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   25 July 2022 Colossians 3:17.

25 Jul 2022 Leave a comment

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

Colossians 3:17.       And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.

Oh friends, after Sunday, the first day of the week, comes Monday, the second day, but also the first day of our work week. So, it’s time to put to good use, the confidence and reassurance we received yesterday when we gathered to praise and worship our God. That strengthening and enlightening was made for just such a time as this. (smile) 

We therefore need to get out into the dark and evil world with a gung-ho attitude and shake it up for Christ’s sake. Use all the tools at our disposal to present a true salt of the earth and light of the world image to the unbelievers, to those who live in darkness, in bondage to the sins and lusts of the flesh exalted by Satan and his iniquity workers.

And yes, sometimes these iniquity workers might be our bosses in the working world, and it might be hard to work for, or under them, but here are some verses from Bruh Paul’s letter to the Colossians that we should always remember and try our best to put into action. The first one says: ‘And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.’ (Col. 3:17) 

And the scholars tell us that means: ‘The beneficial influence produced by the indwelling word of Christ is not only to affect public and private worship (vs. 16), but it is also to control ALL areas of a Christian’s life.’ Ah mih people,  in ALL we do, we must behave as though we are doing it unto God. 

And Bruh Paul’s adds another twist to that scenario in these other verses, when he writes: ‘Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness (sincerity) of heart, fearing God. And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily as to the Lord and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance; for ye serve the Lord God. But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons.’ (Col. 3:22-25) 

And what does all of that mean? Hear the scholars. ‘Eyeservice is work done only when the master is watching. Christian slaves were to work hard when their owners were absent. Singleness of heart means “a sincere disposition.”  Now that is something we all should pay attention to, because the attitude prevalent in the workplace today is to work as little as possible, but appear to be working when the boss is around. And that’s definitely not the Christian attitude. 

Then they explain ‘Do it heartily means the slave is to perform his slave duties wholeheartedly, doing the best job he can with all his strength. A slave could be enthusiastic in carrying out his menial tasks because they were done, not so much for his earthly master (unto men) but for his heavenly Master (to the Lord).’ 

There again, although we are not slaves, but workers, that is not the attitude of today’s worker. A wholehearted attitude towards work is very rare in today’s world, because what we term the work ethic is dead. We no longer take pleasure in doing a good job. We just want to do it as quickly as possible, and don’t care if it’s well done or not. 

That brings us to ‘The reward of the inheritance (or “the reward which is salvation”). The fact that Christian slaves will receive salvation from the Lord rather than from men verifies the assertion in verse 23 that they serve Christ, not their masters.’ And that’s the gospel truth friends! We serve Christ, not the bosses at our workplaces, and Christ desires a good job, well done, from all His followers. 

And Bruh Paul also wrote the same basic thing to the Corinthians. ‘Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatever ye do, do all to the glory of God.’ (1 Cor.10:31) So whether it’s eating, drinking, working, playing, anything believers do, we ought to do it unto the Lord, for His glory!  It could not get any clearer than that. 

But Peter tries to do it anyhow,  (smile) when he declares: ‘If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles (utterances) of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Christ Jesus, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.’ (1 Pet. 4:11) 

And I don’t think, as true believers in Christ Jesus, we need more remembrance or encouragement than that to do a good job in our Lord and Saviour’s holy name today as we face another day of work. (smile) So let’s do the acceptable thing, offer up sincere prayer to God, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, asking for divine assistance to do His will. 

As one voice: ‘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 now, for God to keep His promise, we must keep ours. Much LOVE!

…the blessed stamp of God…should be on everything believers do…

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   11 July 2022 Hebrews 12:3.

11 Jul 2022 Leave a comment

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

Hebrews 12:3.       For consider him that endured such contradiction (hostility) of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds (become discouraged).

Heads up my people! It’s Monday, and that means no dilly dallying, we’ve got to hit the pavement running, charging into the enemy’s ranks, not foolishly, but wisely, spunky and unafraid, living out the gospel of Christ in our godly, worthwhile actions. Yes, we’ve got to take Monday by storm and let it know unequivocally that we mean business, this first day of the work week…and each and every day after that too! 

Ah mih bredrin in these troubled times it is indeed necessary for us to run our race, to run a good race for Christ, one without too many hindrances. And we can only accomplish that if we follow the guidelines of the Good Book. The author of Hebrews tells us in no uncertain terms: ‘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 (snare) us, and let us run with patience (perseverance) the race that is set before us.’ (Heb. 12:1) 

Yes friends, we have a whole ‘cloud of witnesses’ looking on, that’s the heroes of our faith referred to in chapter 11, and we need to do them proud; set the same kind of example that they set, living by strong faith in Christ. However, to do that successfully, we must first remove any impediments that are weighing us down, be it excessive clothing or body weight. Then get ourselves out of any entangling sin that’s holding us back and finally move forward with endurance, keep persevering, because this is a race for salvation and eternal life, one race in which we cannot quit, cannot give up. 

In fact, we can’t even come second, (smile) we’ve got to win it for those who need to come to Christ. And the best way to do all of the above is like the author of Hebrews continues: ‘Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher (originator and 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. 12:2) 

Oh my people, there could be no better example for us to follow than that of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who first blazed the trail of our faith and crossed the finish line miles ahead of all the other participants. We’ve got to keep our eyes fixed steadfastly on that finish line and just keep going in the direction that He set without turning to the right nor to the left. And the next verse puts it all in true perspective. ‘For consider him that endured such contradiction (hostility) of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds (become discouraged).’ (Heb. 12:3) 

Yes faithful believers, we must remember the suffering and rejection that Jesus went through on our behalf and not become tired and/or discouraged when we face the many problems that will crop up in all of our lives. That’s just par for the course. Remember though that we have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us to empower, lead and guide us in all righteousness, so it’s not as difficult as it would otherwise be. 

And here’s the sort of situation we ought to end up in. They are Bruh Paul’s words to Timothy. He said: ‘For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure (death) is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course (race), I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them that LOVE his appearing.’ (2 Tim. 4:6-8) 

Wow! What a powerful testimony! That’s how we need to go out of this world my fellow saints; a winner in the race of life, ready to receive that crown of righteousness from our ever-faithful God! Now, all that we’ve said above is both true and wonderful, but the whole process has got to begin somewhere, and that beginning somewhere is always prayer! So, let’s go confidently to the throne of grace in prayer, outlining our current position through our Monday Morning battle Hymn. 

As one voice: ‘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!’ 

Now friends, we’ve got to wait with eager and expectant patience (smile) for heaven’s answer, and while doing that, keep our promises and develop right heart motives. That’s the only way we will receive positive answers. Much LOVE!

…JESUS…our champion and glowing example…in the race of life… 

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   27 June 2022 Jeremiah 1:19.

27 Jun 2022 Leave a comment

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

Jeremiah 1:19.      And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the Lord, to deliver thee.

It’s another Monday in the life friends, and we’ve got to face up to it with a solid Christian front, as well as individual belly and backbone. (smile) Remember, yesterday we declared that we were good soldiers in Christ’s army and were marching onward to victory? Well, the first hurdle we’ve got to jump, the first battle we must fight is Monday, that first day of every new workweek that looms up pretty large to so many of us, especially those who have not rested enough, or have not sought the renewal and regeneration of our souls, bodies and spirits through fellowship and worship on Sundays with other believers. 

You know that’s one of the purposes why Christians gather every Sunday; not only to give our Father thanks and praise on His day, but also to receive His blessing and rejuvenation so that we can go out and battle whatever Monday and the new workweek brings against us. It’s like a renewing of our spiritual armour. Taking it off, cleaning it up and then putting it back on nice, shiny, and fresh! (smile) I don’t know when we will learn that we can’t handle the new workweek properly unless we are well rested and renewed in the Lord God Jehovah. 

And I recently encountered a rather interesting bit of scripture in the book of Jeremiah, when the Lord called him to be his spokesperson and Jeremiah made all sorts of excuses, but the Lord was adamant in the call, just like He is whenever He calls us to do His bidding. (smile) And I want us to listen carefully to how that first chapter ends. The Lord reassures Jeremiah: ‘And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the Lord, to deliver thee.’ (Jer. 1:19) 

Oh my people, our God is there to protect us. That’s what He’s all about, especially if we are sincerely following His word and the desires placed in our hearts by His Holy Spirit. He won’t ever ask us to fight battles in His name and not provide us with the necessary tools, protection and back up to accomplish the task successfully. But we must buy into what He’s selling, otherwise it won’t work. 

It’s the same basic promise that Jesus made to the disciples when He gave them the Great Commission. ‘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) 

Yes friends, Jesus promised to be with the disciples right down to the end of time, and they believed Him, that’s why they went out and proselytized their world as much as possible. Now that promise was also made to us, future generations of believers. The problem however, is do we believe Jesus like the disciples did? Obviously, many of us don’t, because we don’t tell anybody about our wonderful Lord and Saviour and the dire need to know Him in a personal and intimate relationship if they want to save their souls. 

Many of us know Him, but refuse to share Him. We selfishly try to keep Him to ourselves. But that’s not what Jesus desires. He desires that we share the good news of his gospel and salvation to all with whom we come into contact. It’s the ONLY way that the gospel will ever reach to all ends of the earth. 

As Bruh Paul said so eloquently to the Roman church. ‘How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah saith, Lord, who hath believed our report?’ (Rom. 10:14-16) 

And that’s exactly what’s happening today, too many of us are neither sharing the good news of Christ, nor enabling it to reach others. That means we are doing Him a terrible disservice. Just look at all the sacrifices He made for us to have the options of forgiveness, salvation and eternal life nuh. How hard can it be then to tell someone else about Him, or enable someone to go elsewhere and talk about Him eh? 

Granted, the name of Jesus creates the most disagreement and dissension in the entire world, (smile) but if someone doesn’t want to hear about Him, then you don’t tell them. One of the problems many of us encounter is that despite a person not wanting to hear about Jesus, we still insist on telling them about Him. And that will obviously cause some hard feelings and harsh words. You’ll notice that throughout Jesus’ earthly ministry, if people didn’t want to listen to Him, He never tried to force the situation. 

Oh my fellow saints, we badly need to spread the good news of Jesus, especially in these tough and terrible times, because He is the ONLY hope for living the abundant life here on earth, and eternal life with Him in heaven. Now, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, let’s take our problems to God in prayer, like we are supposed to. 

As one sincere voice: ‘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 the only way to get a positive response from heaven is by doing our part, keeping our promises and showing the Lord that our heart motives are right. Much LOVE!

… if you can’t tell others about Jesus…it simply defeats the whole purpose of LOVING Him…

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   13 June 2022   2 Corinthians 13:14.

13 Jun 2022 Leave a comment

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

2 Corinthians 13:14.      The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the LOVE of God and the communion (fellowship) of the Holy Ghost be with you all. Amen.​

Oh friends, Monday, as it has a nasty habit of doing, (smile) has shown its intimidating face once again. But yuh know what? As always, we will not be intimidated by it because we have been refilled, been regenerated by the Holy Spirit yesterday as we celebrated Trinity Sunday in honour of our Three in One Godhead – the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Yes, there is no God like our God Jehovah… three separate persons, three different identities, but ONE GOD! 

And some people, even believers, find that difficult to fathom. But it’s really quite simple: Although they are all equally God in their own right, we can possibly say that the Father runs the show, makes the big decisions, while the Son acts as His right-hand man, and the Holy Spirit does the hard work, or puts the decisions in to action. I guess we could give the example that the Father LOVED us, His sinful and rebellious creation so much that He didn’t want to lose even a single one to the satanic forces, so He concocted a marvellous, but heartbreaking plan to give us an opportunity to change from our evil ways and be reconciled to Him. 

That’s because, with the disobedience of our forefathers, Adam and Eve, in the Garden of Eden, our sinful nature had become anathema, meaning repugnant and odious to Him, and consequently we had been consigned to eternal damnation. Now, that outstanding plan we just spoke of, involved sending His Son, Jesus Christ to earth in human form, to die a substitutionary sacrificial death in our place, giving us the option of receiving forgiveness for our sins, salvation and eternal life with the Father, when we believe in Christ as our Lord and Saviour. 

But then, after Jesus did His mighty work here on earth, He had to return to heaven. However, our God is so caring and compassionate that the Holy Spirit was dispatched to earth on that fateful Pentecost Sunday, which we celebrated last weekend, to indwell all believers, as our Helper, Comforter, Guide and heaven-sent Companion. And that’s the beauty of our Triune God: they are three distinct, equal though separate entities, but operate as One well-oiled and magnificently functioning machine! Please give our wonderful God some much deserved thanks and praise! 

And although the Bible does not mention the word ‘Trinity,’ the idea is scattered throughout it. Let’s look at a few of them to give us some idea of how they work together, are amazingly intertwined three in one. And the first scripture comes from Matthew 3:13-17, which features the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan by John the Baptist. The Good Book describes it thus: ‘And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him. And lo, a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.’ (Matt. 3:16-17) 

Right there you have the Son baptized, the Holy Spirit coming down to sit on Him like a dove, and the Father’s voice saying that He’s proud of the Son. And later on in Matthew, Jesus talks to the disciples about Christian Baptism thus: ‘Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.’ (Matt. 28:19) There we have baptism in one name, but of three persons. 

Then, if we turn to 1 Peter 1:2, we see him writing to the elect, those chosen by God for salvation. ‘Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.’ (1 Pet. 1:2) 

The scholars describe ‘Elect’ as ‘God’s determination in eternity past to bring certain people into a special relationship with Himself. The Spirit sets apart (sanctifies) for salvation from destruction those whom God has foreknown. Sprinkling is an allusion to Exodus 24:1-11 in which the blood was sprinkled on the altar as a symbol of the people’s obedience and also on the people as a symbol of Jehovah’s acceptance.’ So there, in salvation, we have people chosen by the Father, set apart or sanctified by the Holy Spirit and sprinkled with the blood of Jesus. Another example of how our Triune God works so wonderfully well together as One. 

Meanwhile in 2 Corinthians Bruh Paul offers this benediction to his readers. ‘The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the LOVE of God and the communion (fellowship) of the Holy Ghost be with you all. Amen.’  (2 Cor. 13:14) And the scholars explain it thus. ‘13:14. In his concluding benediction, Paul provides one of the clearest expressions in the New Testament on the doctrine of the Trinity. The deity of the Son, of the Father, and of the Holy Spirit are affirmed by virtue of their relation to one another. The distinctive personalities of each are implied by the independent activity denoted in the threefold operation of grace (from Jesus), LOVE (of the Father) and communion or fellowship (of the Holy Spirit.).’ 

Now doesn’t that make it all a little clearer, as well as tantalizing and interesting! (smile) And we’ll just summarize this last passage of scripture where Bruh Paul prays for inner growth for the Ephesians in Chapter 2:14-21. He prayed that they might be ‘strengthened with might by his (Christ’s) Spirit in the inner man… to know the LOVE of Christ which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God.’ (Eph. 2:16, 19) So there we have more scripture that’s representative of the Triune God we serve, and there’s still more in the Good Book that we don’t have time nor space to consider today. 

And as one commentator says of those scriptures: ‘ It simply shows how easily the writers of Scripture passed from one Person of the Trinity to another, doing so in a way that assumes their equality of nature while preserving their distinct personhood. If the doctrine of the Trinity is not true, it would seem to be blasphemy to speak so freely of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in one and the same breath.’ 

And I do hope that with the above scriptures and explanations we’ve made the doctrine of the ‘Trinity’ somewhat easier to understand and accept. Now, let’s go to our Triune God, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, asking for His help in our earthly problems. Altogether 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!’ 

It’s up to us now my people, to keep our promises if we want God to keep His. Much LOVE!

…the Holy Trinity works in marvellous tandem…just like the universe they created…  

P.S. Please excuse the lateness of the Bit, but the ole fella was somewhat under the weather this morning and didn’t get started until later than usual. And I know it’s long, but good. (smile) And as they say, better late than never. Much LOVE! 

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   30 May 2022 James 4:7.

30 May 2022 Leave a comment

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

James 4:7.       Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 

Awright mih bredrin, today, the first day of our work week, is supposed to be a scorcher; somewhere up around 30 degrees Celsius! And I know that there will lots of complaining as the first real hot day of the year hits us, despite our yearning for hot weather after the cold winter months we’ve recently experienced. And yes, there will be some people with genuine complaints because of their health situation, but for many of us it will just be a case of wishing for something, then not liking it when we get it. 

As the old people would say, be careful what you wish for, for every rose has a thorn in its stem. That’s for sure. All that glitters is not gold, nor is every beautiful face connected to a beautiful heart. In other words, outward appearances can be very deceiving. And that’s the very game that our enemy the devil delights in playing; throwing up beautiful scenarios before us, enticing us to take the bait, and when we do, only to discover that it’s only a beautiful façade, a pretty front, with nothing of substance behind it. 

That’s why Jesus called him the father of lies in John 8:44. From the very beginning he’s been a liar and deceiver, tricking Eve into eating the forbidden fruit in the garden of Eden, and unfortunately, he’s still doing the same things today, still very successfully too, we should note. For whatever reason, although we know that his sugar-coated words are really filled with salt underneath, we still fall for them way too often. 

It’s obvious we have not taken the warning from James, Jesus’ brother to heart. ‘Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh (near) to God, and he will draw nigh (near) to you, Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye doubleminded.’ (James 4:7-8) The long and short of the story friends, is that we don’t submit to, fear or flee from Satan, but stand strong against him. Like Bruh Paul says to the Ephesians: ‘Wherefore take unto you (take up) the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all (that you can do), to STAND.’ (Eph. 6:13) 

Oh my people, the devil cannot lead us into temptation unless we allow him to. But it’s easier to resist him when we have on God’s armour and we are spiritually ready for battle. That’s why Peter also cautions us: ‘Be sober, be vigilant: because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. Whom resist steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in (experienced by) your brethren that are in the world.’ (1 Pet. 8-9) 

Now, it doesn’t speak very highly of us if we know that the evil enemy is constantly prowling, just waiting for a chance to pounce upon an unsuspecting believer, and yet we still fall so often for his evil wiles and schemes. It’s obvious then that word of God is not as well anchored in our souls as it needs to be. We are not casting our cares sufficiently upon Him, not drawing near enough to Him, so that He can help us resist the enemy. And I believe it’s also necessary this morning for us to hear these wise and warning words from John’s first epistle.

 ‘LOVE not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man LOVE the world, the LOVE of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh (physical desires), and the lust of the eyes (personal desires), and the pride of life (self-interests), is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever.’ (1 John 2:15-17) 

Oh my fellow saints, scriptures like that ought to be buried deep in our hearts so that they can shore us up when the devil attacks. And attack he will, again and again. But we need to resist him again and again, to stand strong in the powerful armour of God. It’s the same basic patterns he uses; physical desires, personal desires and self-interests, whatever our weakness, but since sin is such an inherent part of our nature and is so extensive around us, it’s ofttimes difficult to reject it. But reject it we must! 

And the first step in doing so is always prayer, always casting our cares before our wonderful God. So, let’s do that right now nuh, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn. As one sincere voice. ‘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!’ 

Now, we need to keep our promises, if we expect the Lord to keep His. Much LOVE!

…we are not ready for spiritual battle…unless we are fully clothed in God’s spiritual armour… 

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   16 May 2022 Luke 21:34.

16 May 2022 Leave a comment

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

Luke 21:34.       And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged (weighed down) with surfeiting (carousing), and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.

And a voice cried out: ‘Woe is me. It’s Monday!’ And I asked, ‘Why is that?’ And the voice cried out: ‘Because I am not ready to face Monday.’ And again, I asked, ‘Why is that?’ And the voice answered: ‘Because I am sick and tired from all the partying I did this weekend.’ ‘Now that wasn’t very wise, was it?’ I commented. ‘I guess not,’ the voice replied. ‘But now, on a rainy Monday morning to boot, I have to get up and face the stupid traffic to get to a lousy job that I don’t even like.’

 ‘Well then find another one you like,’ I advised. ‘No, that won’t do,’ the voice declared. ‘Why not?’ was my question. ‘Because it pays good and it’s an easy job to do.’ ‘Then you should say praise the Lord and be happy that you even have a job, much less an easy one that pays well,’ I admonished. ‘Millions of people out there don’t even have a job, and don’t know when they’ll get one. Meanwhile, you’re sniffling like a spoiled brat, when you have it so good!’ 

‘And just for your information, if you’ll cut down on the foolish partying on the weekend, go to church on Sundays, so that you can get your spirit renewed and revitalized, and have fellowship with your fellow believers, then you’ll be able to face Monday with a gung-ho attitude, instead of this whiffling one you now have. End of story!’ 

Oh friends, the first step in success of any kind is proper preparation! If you’re not prepared as best you can for a situation, you’ll never be able to face it properly, much less overcome it. Granted, in some cases you can only prepare so much, but we always need to put in as much prep time as possible in whatever we do. Case in point, the voice above there that didn’t prepare to meet Monday. And I daresay that many of us are like that, we dread Mondays because we are not well prepared to meet it. We don’t get enough rest and revitalization of soul and spirit, so we can be confident and meet the day with a good attitude. 

Too many of us are rushing on Monday mornings to get things done that could have been easily and unhurriedly done on Sunday evening, but for whatever reason, we leave them for the last minute, and then wonder why our lives are so rushed and frustrated. And there are many scriptures which warn us of preparedness. So, let’s look at a few nuh. 

These first two come directly from Jesus. After telling the disciples about His coming again, the exact time that only the Father knows, He tells them to watch and pray. ‘And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged (weighed down) with surfeiting (carousing), and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.’ (Luke 21:34) 

And unfortunately, that is what many of us are doing; being too taken up with the things of this world and not preparing ourselves for Christ’s imminent return. Remember, it’s going to come like a thief in the night, and if we’re not prepared for it, then hellfire and damnation, here we come. Then, as was Jesus’ style, He told the parable of the ten virgins invited to the bridegroom’s feast. (Matt. 25:1-13) 

Five of them were wise and took extra oil for their lamps, just in case the bridegroom was tardy and did not show up on time. But the other foolish five did not take extra oil. And the truth be known, the bridegroom was late and the last five ran out of oil and had to go then and buy more. However, by the time they returned, the doors were locked and they could not get in. That’s what will happen to those of us who don’t accept Jesus as Lord and Saviour before he comes back; we’ll be locked out of heaven. 

Jesus said: ‘Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.’ (Matt. 25:13) And that’s the gospel truth friends! We don’t know exactly when Christ will return, but return He must, and thus we must be prepared for it to happen at any time. 

And Bruh Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, also warned about being prepared, but this time for temptation. ‘Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles (evil schemes) of the devil…. Wherefore take unto you (take up) the whole armour of God, that ye might be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.’ (Eph.6:10, 12) 

Oh my people, the only way we can fight successfully in the spiritual battle the enemy is waging against us, is to be prepared, by having on the spiritual armour of God. And we all know that entails: the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit which is God’s Word. Then you wrap all of that up with prayer and supplication. Only if we are thus prepared can we stand strong and steadfast against the enemy, my fellow saints! 

And I like this last warning about preparation from Cousin Sol in Proverbs, where he wisely advises. ‘Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways and be wise: which having no guide (leader) overseer, or ruler, Provideth her meat (food) in the summer, and gathereth her food to harvest. How long wilt thou sleep (lie down), O sluggard? When wilt thou arise out of thy sleep? Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: So shall thy poverty come as one that traveleth (a prowler), and thy want (need) as an armed man.’  (Prov. 6:6-11) 

Ah friends, truer words were never spoken. The sluggard or the habitually lazy person will suffer want eventually, if he doesn’t; get up and get busy, like the ants, who have no ruler or leader but have enough common sense to gather food in the summer and store it for the winter, when there’s little, or none available. It’s all about being prepared for circumstances as best we can friends, be they predictable or unpredictable, like Christ’s Second coming, temptation, poverty, and starvation. 

And the first step in it all is prayer. So, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, let’s go right now to the throne room of grace in confidence, and ask for heavenly help. As one voice: ‘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!’ 

Now let’s not forget that our God doesn’t suffer fools kindly, so if we make a promise, we had better keep it. Much LOVE!

…wisdom dictates…be always as ready as you can be… 

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   25 April 2022 Ecclesiastes 3:1.

25 Apr 2022 Leave a comment

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

Ecclesiastes 3:1.      To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven.

And on this last Monday of April 2022, the second one after Christ’s triumphant resurrection at Easter, although the sun is shining under a slight cloud cover, we are not in any doubt of our past, present or future. And why is that you ask? Well, obviously because we are alive and kicking through the awesome mercies and compassions of our great God, which are new every day! And all God’s children gave out a loud, proud and grateful ‘Glory Hallelujah! Praise the Lord! Praise His Holy Name!’ 

And yes, we ought to be everlastingly grateful that He’s not consumed us in our iniquity, but even more so that He gives us a brand new start every day! Wow! Yes mih bredrin, our great God doesn’t believe in stale, left over stuff, so He gives us a new burst of His spiritual energy every single day of our lives, just enough to get us successfully through that particular day. And some of us might be greedy and want more than a day’s worth, but He knows just how much is sufficient for us. 

Remember Jesus’ words in the prayer He taught the disciples? ‘Give us this day our daily bread.’ Yes, all we need is one day of God’s provision at a time, like He did with the manna He gave to the Hebrews in the wilderness. If they picked up more than a day’s worth, it was spoiled by the next day. (Ex. 16) And we must learn to be satisfied with what God gives us every day, don’t try to go running ahead of Him, because then we only screw up all His well laid plans for us. And sadly, our impatience, and our ability to wait on God and His impeccable timing is exactly why so many of us are getting nowhere fast. 

One commentator puts it simply and succinctly: ‘For us, God’s timing often feels like a long, desperate delay. God’s perfect timing does two things: It grows our faith as we are forced to wait and trust in God and it makes certain that He, and He alone, gets the glory and praise for pulling us through.’ That’s gospel truth my people! And Bruh David said it in Psalm 31: “My times are in Your hands …” (Ps. 31:15) More gospel truth! 

And there are so many scriptures in the Good Book that teach us about waiting on God’s perfect timing. So, this Monday morning, let’s remind ourselves of a few of them nuh. It can’t possibly do us any harm, and it will certainly do us much good. (smile) And we begin with this marvellous and true statement from Cousin Sol writing as the preacher in Ecclesiastes, where He wisely declares: ‘To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven.’ (Eccl. 3:1) And that’s no lie, for God has planned His universe with perfect perfection (smile) and nothing happens outside of His plan. 

And we ought to remember that, for as Cousin Sol writes in Proverbs 16: ‘A man’s heart deviseth (plans) his way: but the Lord directeth his steps.’ (Prov. 16:9) And the Lord is indeed sovereign over man’s planning and scheming, as so many of us have found out to our detriment. 

But these marvellous words from the prophet Jeremiah on God’s behalf, ought to boost our faith and trust in God, although they don’t seem to do so, otherwise we wouldn’t be as impatient and disobedient as we are. ‘For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil (calamity), to give you an expected end (a future and a hope).’ (Jer. 29:11) Now, if God gives such a great promise, why would He do anything contrary to it eh? No reason whatsoever! 

And if He does allow us to go through hardship it’s only to test our faith and to grow us. And for that, He’s given us this magnificent and everlasting promise. ‘And we know that all things work together for good to them that LOVE God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.’ (Rom. 8:28) So as children of God, we ought to know and believe that He will indeed work out everything for our good eventually and wait patiently for His awesome timing. But our current behaviour doesn’t reflect that promise enough. 

And these words of Peter remind us that our God works on an entirely different timeline than us. ‘But beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.’ (2 Pet. 3:8) Now that should make us put on our thinking caps. (smile) And furthermore, as Peter continues: ‘The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is long-suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.’ (2 Pet. 3:9) 

That explains why we’re not consumed but receive new mercies and compassions every day. If the Lord wasn’t long-suffering, that’s patient, we would have been destroyed long ago. So please let’s give much thanks that patience is one of His many virtues. And I think that these words from Jeremiah in his Lamentations is a wonderful scripture to close on. ‘The Lord is my portion, saith my soul: therefore will I hope in him. The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord.’ (Lam. 3:24-26) 

Now friends, there’s absolutely no way we can doubt those scriptures because they are the indisputable truth of God’s word. So please, let’s get ourselves together nuh, for our sakes and those of our children, and begin truly believing in what we read and waiting patiently on God’s timing, because He always has what’s best for us. There’s absolutely no doubt about that! And in keeping with all that we’ve said today, let’s go to our wonderful God in prayer, right now nuh, letting Him know our wants and desires through our Monday Morning battle Hymn. 

As one strong and confident but humble voice. ‘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!’ 

Now it’s time to show our sincerity by living the way we promised…provided we want to receive a positive answer from God. Much LOVE!

…living this earthly life is very simple…simply obey God…and leave all the consequences to him… (Uncle Charles – Dr. Charles Stanley)                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   18 April 2022 Psalm 107:15.

18 Apr 2022 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 107:15.      Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness (LOVING-kindness), and for his wonderful works to the children of men! 

And then it was Monday…Easter Monday! Jesus Christ has risen, He’s taken over the reins of our lives, the reins that Satan used to guide us in the sinful activities of our earlier life! But now, through His awesome resurrection, Jesus has broken the chains of sin that held us captive. Like He read on that fateful Sabbath day from the word of Isaiah (61:1), in the synagogue in His hometown of Nazareth: 

‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captive, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised (oppressed.) To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.’ (Luke 4:18-19) Yes friends, Christ was that bearer of Isaiah’s prophecy of Good Tidings of salvation for the people of Zion! As He said to them after reading the Word: ‘This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears (hearing).’ (Luke 4:21) 

Oh my people, in this Easter Season when Christ rose triumphant from the grave, the fulfillment of so many scriptures took place. As the psalmist so readily and truthfully declares (chuh!!!) in Psalm 107 – God’s wonderful works to the children of men. ‘Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness, and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder (broke their chains in pieces).’ (Ps. 107:13-14) 

And that’s exactly what Jesus accomplished through His magnificent resurrection! Breaking chains; setting captives free, healing the blind and broken-hearted, bringing sinners out of darkness into the marvellous light of his wonderful gospel of peace, LOVE, grace, mercy, salvation, reconciliation to the Father and the ever-faithful promise of eternal life! 

Remember how Jesus said it to Nicodemus when he came to Jesus looking for answers. ‘For God so LOVED the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.’ (John 3:16-17) 

Yes my fellow believers, in all the hurrah and whatever, we’ve forgotten God’s purpose for sending His only Son to earth in human form…to save us! And all we need to do is simply believe – believe in Him…that He is indeed the Son of God, and thus has the power to save us, to set us free from the darkness of this evil world. Everything else is simply topping on the cone! (smile) 

And that’s why we sinners, set free by the LOVE, grace and mercy of God ought to do like the psalmist continues in Psalm 107: ‘Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness (LOVING-kindness), and for his wonderful works to the children of men! For he hath broken the gates of brass (bronze), and cut the bars of iron in sunder (broken them in pieces).’ (Ps. 107:15-16) 

Ah my brethren, how much more shall Jesus do before we truly LOVE and sincerely accept Him as our Lord and Saviour? He came to earth as a man, died on the cross to pay for our abominable sins, triumphantly rose from the dead, setting us free from the deadly and murderous grip of Satan, thus giving us a chance, an option to get away from the overwhelming and stifling darkness and gloom of this topsy-turvy world and be successfully reunited with our Creator! What more can He do eh? I really don’t know nuh. 

But there just seems to be something about sin, it’s short lived and consequential pleasures, that keep calling, keep driving us back to the gloom and darkness of Satan’s evil empire. However, for all our sakes, please, please, let’s remember that  ‘the wages of sin is death – eternal separation from Almighty God; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.’ (Rom. 6:23) So, without Jesus living in our hearts, souls and lives, through the indwelling of His Holy Spirit, we don’t have a chance of escaping hellfire and damnation! 

It’s as simple as that my people! Believe and survive…or don’t believe and die! That’s it in a nutshell. Jesus can’t do any more than He’s already done. It’s all up to us now, and believe me, that decision to follow Jesus or not, is the most important one we’ll ever make. So please carefully consider all that’s been said and done before you decide, because once it’s all over there’s no changing of minds, no going back. 

And maybe this favourite saying of Uncle Charles (Charles Stanley) re the principle of seed time and harvest, might help us to make the right decision. He wisely says: ‘We reap what we sow…more than we sow and later than we sow.’ Simply meaning that ‘future consequences are inevitably shaped by present actions.’ So, whatever we hope to achieve in the future, we must set those wheels in motion right now. In other words, we can’t hope to plant peas and reap corn or something different than peas. Likewise, we can’t hope to dwell in conspicuous sin in this earthly life and then reap eternal life in heaven with Jesus. It just won’t happen. 

In wisdom then, let’s see about our eternal destiny right now nuh, by going to God in prayer, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn and asking for His divine help to solve our many difficult problems. Altogether now: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Easter 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!’ 

Now let’s go and do what we’ve promised. It’s the only way friends; the only way to Jesus’ heart! Much LOVE!

…to know what to do…and not do it…is sin…and sin brings death… 

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

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