Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 August 2021 Lamentations 3:21.

24 Aug 2021 Leave a comment

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Lamentations 3:21.     This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. 

Yes friends, it’s Tuesday; another beautiful summer day in the life! And it’s not only the day itself that’s beautiful and encouraging, but also all the other unseen things like the many spiritual blessings which have been bestowed on us. As the Good Book reminds and reassures us: ‘This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.’ (Lam. 3:21-23) 

Oh my people, what a wonderful God we serve and worship! Imagine that nuh: Everyday He makes us brand new mercies and compassions! And why is that eh? I guess because He LOVES and cares for us so much. Remember we are His creation, and He doesn’t want to lose even one of us to the enemy, so that’s one way to keep us on an even keel, along the road to righteousness, that difficult, but oh so rewarding, straight and narrow path. 

And don’t forget that it was during an especially rough time in his life that the prophet Jeremiah wrote these lamentations. And that’s one of the basic purposes of the word; to give us courage and reassurance, to help us get through the hard times with the hope and faith that those rough times too must pass, because our omnipotent God is on the throne and will not allow them to overcome us. Instead, He will cause us to overcome whatever comes against us. 

That’s why the prophet Isaiah so assuredly stated: ‘No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgement thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of (from) me, saith the Lord.’ (Is. 54:17) Wow! What a powerful reassuring scripture my brethren! 

And I found this interesting commentary by one Heather Adams on the biblestudy tools.com website. She says: ‘Life presents us with many challenges, but thankfully encouragement can be found literally at our fingertips. Reading God’s Word might not change circumstances in the moment, but our strength can be renewed and our attitude can be adjusted while we walk through a trial. God made a powerful declaration and promise here. He was reminding His people of His might and sovereignty, as well as His abiding LOVE for them. 

The idea actually echoes an assurance the Lord gave the young nation of Israel: “…I will be an enemy to your enemies and will oppose those who oppose you” (Exodus 23:22). Though it evokes images from an older age, this verse has meaning for us today in our struggles, whether small and large. Simply put, God was stating that anyone who is seeking to do evil against believers will fail. Though for a time it may seem that we are defeated in a situation, God assures us the victory.’ 

And we do have the victory, because our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ lives and owns the future! He’s given us the victory through His death on the cross at Calvary, His resurrection and ascension back to heaven, where He now sits at the right hand of the Father advocating on our behalf! Glory be mih bredrin! And once again I have to declare, what a wonderful God we serve and worship! But like so many other things in this world, regardless of how much someone might rave about it, you can only know the reality, the true experience by undergoing it yourself. 

That’s why, with Jesus, you can only truly know him by accepting Him as your Lord and Saviour, inviting Him into your heart and asking Him to take away your sin, your pain and sorrow. This is a personal relationship; an individual thing, and the numerous witnesses to His wonderful relationship only adds strength, encouragement and flavour, that’s salt (smile) to the abundant light He brings to it. So, life is indeed worth living when you live for Jesus! 

But like every wonderful advertisement, it does come with some caveats, with some conditions attached. (smile) And I just want to list one important condition here, that of waiting on the Lord, as so well said by Jeremiah during his rough spell. He rightly declares: ‘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… For the Lord will not cast off for ever. But though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies.’ (Lam. 3:24-26, 31-32) 

Yes friends, though the Lord may allow us to go through rough times, for whatever reason, and they are usually good ones, though we may not think so at the time, He will eventually bring us out of those trials, and much stronger and wiser too. That’s because in the overall scheme of things, His LOVE, His mercies and compassions will eventually outweigh everything else! That’s’ why He also sent His One Son Jesus, to die on the cross to pay our sin debt in full and reconcile us back to Him! It’s all about the Lord’s LOVE, forgiveness, mercy and compassion friends. And we’d be oh so foolish not to accept it. 

But like another great man of God, Bruh David advised. ‘I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait (in faith) on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait (in faith), I say, on the Lord.’ (Ps. 27:13-14) Oh my fellow saints, you won’t find truer words than those anywhere. We must expect to see the goodness of God in this life, because that’s why Jesus said He came, so that we could have life, and have it abundantly. (John 10:10) 

However, at the same time, we need to live by faith and wait, wait patiently, quietly and expectantly on the Lord’s timing, since He does everything in His own time. He’s the Boss and therefore that’s His prerogative. And believe me, He does use that prerogative, (smile) as so many of us have found out. But He’s NEVER LATE! That I can personally testify to, though His timing usually drives me crazy. (smile) 

So, all in all, our God is great! There’s none other like Him! He’s wonderful, merciful, LOVING, and compassionate, but because He is also just, that’s a God of justice, He doesn’t put up with foolishness. That means, when you come to Him, you have to be serious. Oh, He does have a sense of humour, but He doesn’t take pleasure in fools! And having sang the praises of our wonderful God, let’s go home now declaring (steupsss!!!) our Tuesday Mantra that contains even more of His praises. (smile) 

Altogether now: ‘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 the world. Amen!’ 

Now it’s our bounden duty to go out and share that wonderful LOVE and friendship of Christ with others, so that they too can come to know His amazing person! Much LOVE!

…today looks like a smiley kind of day…and why not eh…God is on the throne…and we are alive and kicking…Glory Hallelujah…                                                                                                                                  

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 December 2020 Daniel 6:16b.

08 Dec 2020 Leave a comment

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Daniel 6:16b.     ​Thy God whom thou servest continually, he will deliver thee.

Well it’s Tuesday already… And yes, all day, cause time’s not waiting on me, as the duchess likes to say when I complain about how the days going by so fast. (smile) But it will soon be Christmas; that idyllic time of year when we celebrate our Saviour’s birth. Wonder what it’s going to be like this year eh, with the pandemic and the many other problems our society is currently facing? 

And yuh know what? I don’t think it’s going to be much different nuh, because people are still running helter-skelter to do Christmas shopping and what not. You’d never believe that we’re under a lockdown. No wonder the Covid-19 is not getting better and we’re setting new records every day. And with the upcoming promise of a vaccine on the horizon, people seem to be taking advantage of that news and disobeying the medical authorities even more. 

One more thing, don’t think that a vaccine is going to solve our problems nuh. I tend to believe it’s going to cause even more problems, what with all the negative info that’s floating around about it being Satan’s way of marking and controlling us, and the hordes of people who already are refusing to take it! It’s going to be a big bam-bam! And those who take it will rail against those who haven’t, and vice-versa, with all kinds of name calling and possible violence involved. 

But friends, please, let’s recall these momentous words of the pagan king Darius to Daniel when he threw him in the lion’s den. ‘Thy God whom thou servest continually, he will deliver thee.’ (Dan. 6:16b) Ah friends, if a pagan king could be so encouraging under those dire circumstances, why can’t we be likewise encouraging to each other eh, and faithfully keep serving the Lord God Jehovah eh? 

We know, or at least ought to know of His might, majesty, and power! Notwithstanding His most generous and compassionate grace and mercy to those who LOVE and faithfully serve Him. So why are we in such a negative state, if we claim to know that ‘all things work together for good to them that LOVE God, to them who are called according to his purpose?’ (Rom. 8:28) 

It’s all about testing us and maturing our faith my people. Just like He tested Israel’s faith and wanting to mature them when they left Egypt by leading them the long way around, instead of the eleven-day journey it would normally take through the Philistine land: ‘for God said, Lest peradventure the people repent (change their minds) when they see war, and they return to Egypt.’ (Ex. 13:17) 

And we see how they behaved so disobediently in the wilderness despite all of God’s goodness, because they were by nature a stubborn, stiff-necked, hard-ears people. That’s why it took them forty long years to reach the Promised Land. The Lord just led them round in circles until all those who had come out of Egypt had died, except Caleb and Joshua. How many times did they threaten Moses to go back to Egypt eh, in spite of the harsh life of slavery they had lived there? 

Oh friends, the Lord has given us such a wonderful life nowadays, why aren’t we thankful and obedient to Him eh? Why can’t we say faithfully, and sincerely claim like Bruh David did eh? ‘I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.’ (Ps. 27:13) 

Yes mih people, life is so good when yuh worshipping and praising the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! So why the great disobedience, the turning away in droves, the mocking and blasphemy and lack of LOVE amongst us eh? Why the rampant evil, resentment, greed, and godlessness in our society eh? Why are we allowing the prince of darkness to cover our eyes so that we cannot see the light that radiates the goodness and LOVING-kindness of the Lord our God in the earth eh? 

Why are we worshipping so many different idols and gods who have absolutely no power eh, who are dead like doorknobs, and refuse to worship the One and ONLY living God Jehovah eh? I recently saw a commentary where the commentator says that we have turned away from God, and being the gentleman He is, He has stepped back and allowed us to be ruled by Satan, as we so greatly seem to desire, and what we are now witnessing and experiencing is simply the evil one’s authority and hegemony over our world. 

And if that’s true, then I don’t like it one bit, and you shouldn’t either! But either way my brethren, we ought to know that our God won’t leave nor forsake us, for He’s so promised, and He’s faithful to keep ALL of His promises. So for those of us who consider ourselves true believers in Christ Jesus, then we need to stand up strong and steadfast and adamantly resist the devil and his evil ministrations. 

We ought to be mature enough in our faith to know that whatever is happening in our world right now is not the end, for God is still in control despite how it looks, and He’s promised us victory through Christ Jesus. That means we have to put on His spiritual armour and with prayer and thanksgiving, fight the good fight, show the world that we are indeed mighty conquerors through Christ who died for us, that we are the head and not the tail, and we know for certain that the Lord will provide all our needs according to his riches in glory by our Lord and Saviour. 

That’s why these words of Peter ring so true in these turbulent and troubled times: ‘Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. 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 (being experienced by) your brethren that are in the world. But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish (confirm), strengthen, settle you. To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.’ (1 Pet. 5:6-11) That’s the basic answer to this life my brethren. 

So now, for those of us who are sincerely trying to live it, let’s go home declaring (ah Lord eh!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the whole world know who and whose we are. In strong voice, with sincere hearts: ‘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 the world. Amen!’ 

So let’s go and do just that nuh! Much LOVE!

…life is all about LOVE…through Christ Jesus… 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 18 July 2020 Romans 12:9.

18 Jul 2020 Leave a comment

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

Romans 12:9.     ​Let LOVE be without dissimulation (hypocrisy). Abhor that which is evil; cleave (cling) to that which is good.
 

Wow! Another beautiful day in the land of the living! And who says life isn’t great eh? It might not be easy, but it sure is wonderful! (smile) No wonder Bruh David could confidently write in Psalm 27: ‘I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.’ (Ps. 27:13) Yeh friends, we need to believe if we’re going to see God’s goodness in and on our lives! 

Remember, He never said that life would be easy, but faithfully promised to be with us every moment of every day and help us get through all our difficulties. The problem is that many of us seem to think that once we start walking with Christ, life will just be a bed of roses… 

Hn! But I have news for you…ofttimes it gets harder before it gets better! That’s why so many of us turn back before we can encounter the real treasure of following Christ, like the seed that’s fallen on barren ground and betwixt thorns and weeds. No backbone and/or belly! But please remember that walking with Christ is not for the faint of heart, but He does strengthen and enable you if you step out in faith! End of monologue! (smile) 

And since it’s Saturday, let’s have a gander at the quotes our fine friend Anselm sent us this past week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. Let’s hope I can do them justice. And the first one declares (awright!): ‘Great things are done by a series of small things brought together.’ And that’s generally true! Just look at all the wonderful inventions in our world; very few of them come in one piece, but are made of several, if not many small pieces melded and welded together to make one big whole. 

That’s just like the human body. How did Bruh Paul put it? ‘For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office (function): So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one (individually) members one of another.’ (Rom. 12:4-5) Yeh friends, it takes many small parts of different functionality to make a great whole, like we of many people, creeds and races are one big body of Christ! 

But the next quote is even more vital and important for great things to run properly. ‘Watch the little things; a small leak will sink a great ship.’ And isn’t that the gospel truth! Comparatively speaking it wasn’t a big leak that sunk the Titanic. But sink it, it did! And it’s even more important with us, the body of Christ, His church, which is very leaky these days, with all the gossip, divisions over petty stuff, the resentment, the many li’l cliques and the vein of evil that unfortunately can be found within it. 

No wonder the body of Christ is so disjointed and not moving together as one big, great, smoothly working machine! That’s why Bruh Paul pointedly said to the church at Rome: ‘Let LOVE be without dissimulation (hypocrisy). Abhor that which is evil; cleave (cling) to that which is good.’ (Rom. 12:9) That means Christians must faithfully care for each other in spite of the circumstances and responses. The caring must be genuine and unfeigned. 

And having said all of that, we come to the next quote: ‘Worry is the most wasteful thing in the world.’ I don’t know if it’s the most wasteful thing, but I do know that it’s up there amongst the top wasteful things. Consequently we can’t worry about what’s happening in our lives, our church or our world, because worrying won’t help in the least bit. It only makes things worse by taking away what li’l positivity we have left to use on righting the ship. As Sister Joyce (Joyce Meyer) likes to say. ‘Worry is like a rocking chair, you can sit and rock in it all day and still not move anywhere!’ 

And that’s so true, since worry is a negative emotion that only keeps you back from seriously tackling your problem. It’s also why this next quote is ever so timely: ‘Focus on being productive, instead of busy.’ And isn’t that the living truth! It’s the best advice our world can have and take right now! Why? Because we all talk about being so busy – busy doing what eh? It’s the first excuse that we come up with nowadays. We’re too busy to call each other, too busy to get together, too busy to read God’s Word and spend time with Him, etc. etc. 

But what the hell are we so busy doing? Not a darm thing! Except if you want to call the anemic pandemic of texting and all the other unnecessary foolishness that goes on social media, which is our go to for all of our needs these days. Hn! Just imagine how important social media has become when the most powerful leader in the world does most of his business there, spends more time tweeting than reading his briefings. (grimace) 

But that’s the new normal…and with the current pandemic of Covid-19, with physical distancing being such a big thing, it’s become an even bigger part of our lives, and thus also a bigger and more important tool for those who wish to spread evil and lies and stir up unnecessary disturbances. 

That brings us to this last quote: ‘Excellence is a continuous process and not an accident.’ Oh so true my people, oh so true! A life of excellence is the ONLY thing that we should all aspire to. And you’ll note from the quote that it’s a continuous, life- long process, and it doesn’t happen by accident, we have to consciously seek it and pursue it. It’s like true, divine peace, and the righteousness of God. And if you are, or want to be a true follower of Jesus then you need to embrace the word ‘excellence’ and all that it stands for, because that’s Jesus watchword! While here on earth, He followed the Father’s will diligently and with excellence. 

You’ll note that He never did anything on His own, or took credit for anything, but it was always the Father’s will, and likewise the credit. As he said so plainly: ‘For I came down from heaven , not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.’ (John 6:38) And He did a bang-up, most excellent job my brethren! That’s why the Father gave Him the highest name possible, to whom all knees must bow and all voices declare that He is Lord to the glory of God the Father. 

So my fellow saints in Christ, on this Saturday morning when we are surrounded by all sorts of known and unknown predicaments and circumstances, let’s not be fearful or worried, but let’s sincerely turn to the One who died to save our spiritual selves, Jesus Christ, for He is also capable of saving our physical bodies. That’s what He’s there for: for us to cry out to Him in times of desperate need: ‘Help Lord!’ Much LOVE!

…who is the ONLY ONE that can help us…JESUS CHRIST…. 

P.S. Just to prove my point about the distracting quality of social media. The Bit is partially late because early on I was interacting with three different people at the same time. (smile) Much LOVE!

Today’s Scrip-Bit 17 January 2018 Psalm 27:4.

17 Jan 2018 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 27:4.   One thing have I desired of the Lord, that I will seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty (delightfulness) of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple.

Ah mih people, a friend who reads the Bit told me yesterday that everyday I complain about the weather. Well, today, I’m just going to say that it’s sunny and cold. (smile) And oh… that it’s better in Tobago. It certainly is! 

Now let’s move on to something more worthwhile than the weather. It’s a poem titled ‘Beauty’ by Gramps Schuler (Dr. Robert H. Schuller) from His hour of Power Devotional. I’m sure I’ve shared it before, but as they say, when it’s nice you’ve got to share it at least thrice. (smile) 

Please pray with me. ‘Thank you, Father, for filling the world with beauty. I thank you for the beauty of life, the beauty of LOVE, the beauty of children, and the beauty of old people. I thank you for the beauty of Christ and for the beauty of any life where Christ is invited through the Holy Spirit. Thank you, Father, that you have made my life beautiful too. Amen.’ 

Isn’t that special friends? It surely is! And you young people will notice that there’s also beauty in old people. (smile) When we’re imbued with Christ and the Holy Spirit, we can see beauty in almost any and everything! That’s because Christ Himself is beautiful and He opens our eyes to the beauty of the things around us. 

If we don’t have Christ in us, then our eyes are clouded and nothing looks beautiful. And how does this all happen eh? The Daily Bread tells us that ‘The Holy Spirit transforms us through His LOVE and by His grace.’ What powerful tools my people; LOVE and grace, through which despicable sinners like you and me can be transformed into righteous believers, to be called the righteousness of Christ! 

And all God’s children declared a loud and grateful: ‘Thank You heavenly Father for filling us with your grace and LOVE and bringing us into righteous fellowship with You, through Your Son Jesus Christ. We LOVE and adore You and will continue to do our best to live the way You want us to. In Jesus name we pray. Amen!’ 

That brings us to the heartfelt desire of Bruh David in our Bit. ‘One thing have I desired of the Lord, that I will seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty (delightfulness) of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple.’ 

Oh friends, when we take time to really know our God, we’ll find that He is truly delightful. But we can only discover that wonderful aspect of His character by taking time to spend with Him and getting to know Him intimately. Many of us claim we know God, but as soon as something negative happens and He doesn’t fix it immediately, we turn on Him. 

But we have to remember that God is the potter and we are the clay, and we have to abide by His decisions, be they convenient and/or comfortable for us. And when we abide by His decisions, without a whole lot of complaining, however they may affect us, that’s when we come into true intimacy with Him and He shows us His true delightful self by blessing us with His LOVE and mercy. 

It’s just like being with our earthly fathers. Unless we spend sufficient time with them, (pay attention children) we won’t know their true ways. But when we do, and learn their likes and dislikes, and generally stay on their good side, we see the delightfulness of our fathers and are usually showered with LOVE and blessings. Our God is no different; He wants our constant attention and expects us to do His will. 

What did Bruh David say in our Bit? ‘…that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life…’ Oh my brethren, do we feel that way; like we want to dwell with the Lord for our entire lives? If we’ve truly surrendered our lives to Him, then we ought to. 

And if we haven’t surrendered our lives to Him, then we ought to right now, today, because time is of the essence; Jesus is coming back soon, and once He returns there will be no more chance for surrender. 

And we all know that although Bruh David wasn’t perfect, made mistakes for which he paid dearly, he faithfully trusted the Lord in all aspects of his life, and was quick to ask for forgiveness, thus the Lord’s LOVING-kindness towards him. We can have the same kind of life friends, if we do our best to walk in step with God. 

Hear how Bruh David ends Psalm 27. ‘I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait (in faith) on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.’ (Ps.27:13-14) 

Words of everlasting wisdom my people! Words that we ought to follow in our own lives, if we sincerely want to experience the goodness of God. Nuff said! 

Now let’s go home declaring our Wednesday Wail, letting the world know of our wonderful relationship with the Lord. In all sincerity and truth now: ‘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!’ 

And we all know that it will be indeed a glorious future, so let’s do our best to encourage others to join us in looking forward to it nuh. Much LOVE!

…the more time we spend with God…the more intimate we’ll get with Him…

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 January 2017 Psalm 27:13.

08 Jan 2017 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 27:13.   I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

Oh friends, oh friends, it’s Sunday, the Lord’s Day, so let’s have church like we’re supposed to nuh! And as always, let’s begin with some praise and worship to open up our hearts to receive the word of our magnificent God. 

So in full voice and strong belief, let’s sing, let’s cause our souls and voices to soar heavenward. ‘Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee, God of glory, Lord of LOVE; Hearts unfold like flow’rs before Thee, Op’ning to the sun above. Melt the clouds of sin and sadness; Drive the dark of doubt away; Giver of immortal gladness, Fill us with the light of day! 

All Thy works with joy surround Thee, Earth and heav’n reflect Thy rays, Stars and angels sing around Thee, Center of unbroken praise. Field and forest, vale and mountain, Flow’ry meadow, flashing sea, Singing bird and flowing fountain Call us to rejoice in Thee. 

Thou art giving and forgiving, Ever blessing, ever blest, Wellspring of the joy of living, Ocean depth of happy rest! Thou our Father, Christ our Brother, All who live in love are Thine; Teach us how to love each other, Lift us to the joy divine. 

Mortals, join the happy chorus, Which the morning stars began; Father LOVE is reigning o’er us, Brother LOVE binds man to man. Ever singing, march we onward, Victors in the midst of strife, Joyful music leads us Sunward In the triumph song of life.’ 

Now that was certainly a rousing rendition my people, heaven couldn’t help but pay attention! 

And today’s sermon is based on our Bit, which exudes one of God’s great promises. ‘I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.’ 

Yes friends, God’s goodness is a primary function of our earthly existence, else why would He make it as beautiful and provident as He did eh? A lot of us talk about seeing hell on earth, but as the Belinda Carlisle song declares: ‘They say in heaven, LOVE comes first We’ll make heaven a place on earth Ooh, heaven is a place on earth!’ 

And that is exactly what our God intends it to be, else why would He send His Son to earth to die for our sake and say: ‘The thief cometh not but for to (except) to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.’ (John 10:10) 

If we were not meant to have a decent life down here on earth, Jesus’ life, words and death would be meaningless. 

Oh, Jesus certainly did not mean that everything on earth would be hunky dory, but even when it wasn’t we would be okay. Listen to Him: ‘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) 

He couldn’t be any clearer. Life on earth will have its problems, but even then, when we sincerely believe and trust Him, we will be able to handle those problems because He has already overcome the world’s nonsense. 

And yuh know what friends, when those problems confront us and we stand strong in His name, we come through them ever more mature in our Christian faith, for good times don’t increase faith, it’s the rough times that do. 

Just take me now as a good example. A couple weeks ago I figured I was hale and hearty, but all of a sudden I discover that I have heart problems and the whole tenor of my life changes. 

So what should my reaction be eh? Should I bang my head on the wall and blame God? Absolutely not! Because that won’t help my problem, just cause it to get worse. My reaction is to believe that God has a purpose for my problem, and wait and pray and hang in until He is ready to divulge the solution to His plan. 

Now I don’t know when that is going to happen, but in the meantime I’m expected to be faithful and relax in the peace that He gives me. Oh, it’s not easy, but with God’s help, it is possible. 

All I’m trying to say friends, is that though life can be rough down here on it, it can also be a heavenly place. The problem is that we don’t count our blessings, we count our problems and magnify them. However if we put our troubles and blessings side by side, the majority of us will discover that our blessings far outweigh our problems. 

As somebody said: ‘Count your blessings, while others are adding up their troubles.’ It’s basically a problem of attitude. We allow the world system to influence us too much, when the certain and faithful promises of Jesus ought to be our mainstay. 

And we’ll end with some more strategic and encouraging words of our wonderful Lord and Saviour. When He taught the disciples to pray, this is the basic outline He gave them. ‘After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven…’ (Matt.6:9-10)

Yes friends, we ought to seek God’s kingdom and through our prayers and consequently our actions, the will of the Father must also be done here on earth as it is in heaven. 

As the scholars tell us: ‘The recognition of Thy will be done emphasizes the idea that prayer is to bring about the conformity of the will of the believer to the will of God. Prayer is an act of spiritual expression that brings us into conformity to the very nature and purpose of God.’ 

So my fellow believers, let’s stop thinking of our lives as being hell on earth nuh, and instead consider them as the Lord desires – heaven on earth. That’s wisdom at its zenith! Much LOVE!

…Jesus came to earth to set us free…show us a slice of heaven…not to keep us in bondage…which hell is all about… 

P.S. We’re getting a li’l earlier each day. (smile) Much LOVE!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 13 September 2016 Joshua 1:6a.

13 Sep 2016 Leave a comment

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

Joshua 1:6a.   Be strong and of a good courage…

Well friends, it’s Tuesday, the day after Monday. (smile) Hope you had a good Monday, but even if you didn’t, it’s time to let it go into the past where it belongs and greet today with new enthusiasm and faith, by declaring, ‘This is the day which the Lord hath made, I will rejoice and be glad in it.’ Yes my people, it’s the only way to keep a joyful, positive spirit in these end times. 

Now here is something from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin that’s ever so timely for many of us Christians, as well as unbelievers. It’s simply titled ‘Seek First.’ 

And it says: ‘O Lord How futile, how foolish To attempt to keep up with the Joneses On the gold-studded ladder of success. Even if we make it (Setting high, competitive goals) We awake one dismal morning To discover the Smiths have bypassed the Joneses So it starts again – the goading competition. 

God, Your objective is far more rewarding. You want us to “keep up” with Your Plan For our individual lives. “Seek first the Kingdom of God” Is Your shining word to us. Forgive us for moments and days (Even months) When our LOVE of money Has exceeded our LOVE for You. 

Please, God Be our Financial Advisor And deliver us from a thousand “if onlys.” May we never be defeated By the lack of money Or captivated by the lure of it.’ 

Oh my brethren, in this ever more greedy, selfish and competitive world, that is the path a lot of us are following; the lure of money and material possessions. But our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ has in no uncertain terms told us: ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt.6:33) 

Yes friends, if we first seek the spiritual realm, then the material will be forthcoming to us. And the Bible promise used for that poem is one we know all too well, but still neglect to follow properly. Listen up to these monumental words of Bruh Paul to Timothy. 

‘And having food and raiment (clothing) let us be therewith content. But they that will be (desire to be) rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful (harmful) lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition (ruin and destruction). 

For the LOVE of money is the root of all (kinds) of evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith (for which some in their greediness have strayed from the faith), and pierced themselves through with many arrows.’ (1 Tim.6:8-10) 

Oh my people, the world is strewn with the rotting carcasses of so many of us who have made being rich in money and material things our life’s goal. It’s certainly not a goal that’s worth striving after because it causes too much stress and strain and invites too many negatives in our lives. 

However, as Bruh Paul continues to Timothy: ‘But thou, O man of God, flee these things: and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, LOVE, patience, meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, where unto thou art also called, and hast professed (confessed) with a good profession (confession) before many witnesses.’ (1 Tim.6:11-12) 

Yeh friends, as true believers in Christ, that is the path we ought to follow. But unfortunately, the lure of the world, its material possessions, and lustful pleasures are so strong that we can easily get caught up in them. That’s why our Bit is so important in these times of much agitation. ‘Be strong and of a good courage…’ 

It doesn’t have many words, but it says a whole lot in terms of our spiritual life. Without strength and courage we won’t be able to withstand the attacks of the evil one. And that spiritual strength and courage can only be gotten by having the truthful word of God dwelling securely in our souls. 

As Jesus said: ‘I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.’ (John 8:12) Oh my people, are we walking in the light of Jesus or the darkness of the world? For all our sakes, I sincerely hope it’s the latter, otherwise crapaud smoke we pipe (ours will be a very rough landing). 

Now let’s look at a scripture that encourages us to seek the Lord’s strength. And nobody exemplified that more than Bruh David. Hear him: ‘I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait (in faith) on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait (in faith), I say, on the Lord.’ (Ps.27:13-14) 

Bruh David was anointed king of Israel in his teenaged years, but never got to sit upon the throne until many years later, after going through many trials and tribulations not of his own making. He only succeeded by staying strong in his faith in the God of his forefathers. And that’s the only way we will succeed too my friends. 

Now let’s go home by declaring our Tuesday Mantra with lots of conviction and passion, because, without conviction and passion in our lives we are just like the living dead. 

All together now: ‘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 the world.  Amen!’ 

So having said all of that, let’s now go out and behave like the beloved of God and share the LOVE of our friend Jesus with the rest of the world. That’s wisdom of untold dimensions! Much LOVE!

…the only fountain of true strength…is that which is found in Jesus…

 

 

 

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