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Today’s Scrip-Bit 3 August 2021 Hebrews 4:12a.

03 Aug 2021 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart, a mirage, acknowledge and honour God in our celebrations, activities of the mind, All thanks and praise to the Lamb of god, all things are naked and opened, breathed into his nostrils, celebrations are not bad things, dividing asunder of soul and spirit, don't have to hurry, don't have to worry, give an account of our earthly behaviour, I am the beloved of god, imperfect beings, in god's eyes, Jesus Christ, just our imagination playing tricks on us, keep thy heart with all diligence, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, man became a living soul, mano a mano, no creature not manifest in his sight, no one can take that from me, not what I do, not what I have, not what people say about me, of the joints and marrow, opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do, out of it are the issues of life, pagan style rituals, part of the human's bone structure, prince of peace, reaches into the inner secrets of man's mind, ruling the roost, set our minds to it, share His love with the world, sharper than any twoedged sword, spies an oasis, the Battlefield of the mind, the breath of life, the Immaterial Part of Man, the seat of the intellect, the soul lives on forever, the Word of God is quick and powerful, to know Jesus is to love Him, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, unto the coming of our Lord Jesus christ, whatever captures our minds captures our hearts, who gives us the victory, whole spirit and body be preserved blameless, Wise counsellor

Hebrews 4:12a. For the word of God is quick (that’s alive, living), and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword,

So what’s up this Tuesday morning eh friends, after a riotous Civic Holiday long weekend? Hope your work doesn’t, or didn’t interfere too much with your celebration. (smile) On a more serious note though, the Lord does expect us to enjoy our days down here on earth. So, celebrations are not bad things. Have you ever noticed the amount of feast days He mandated for the Jewish people back in the old days? Several…some even a week long! But the important thing is that we acknowledge and honour Him in ALL of our celebrations. They ought not to be just pagan style rituals, celebrations for celebrations sake, but in some manner glorify and honour our great God.

Unfortunately, in these current times, we are seeing less and less celebrations with God’s name and honour glorified, and more of them based on Satan’s desires and lifestyles. It certainly seems like our society has thrown Jehovah God to the back of the bus. We no longer consider Him, Number One, El Numero Uno. The evil enemy now seems to be ruling the roost. But friends, that’s just our imagination playing tricks on us; like a thirsty man in the desert who spies an oasis in every step he crawls…but it’s never real, always a mirage…existing just in his mind.

And that’s the same way the enemy believes that he’s winning the war. Oh, he might win a battle here and there, but the victor of the overall war is a foregone conclusion, Jehovah God, through His majestic warrior Son, Jesus Christ, possessor of the mighty two-edged sword, the Word of God! And all God’s children shouted a loud, proud and grateful: ‘Glory Hallelujah! All thanks and praise to the Lamb of God, who gives us the victory!’

Yes my brethren, Jesus is our mighty warrior King, our Lord, Saviour, Prince of Peace, Wise Counsellor, and ALL that we can ever hope or long for! Please, please, let us continually remember the Word of God, and let it lead and guide us in these most trying and troubled times, for it is only by, and through it, that we can ever hope to have victory in our individual lives.

And I just LOVE how the scriptures describe it. ‘For the word of God is quick (that’s alive, living), and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of (able to judge) the thoughts and intents (intentions) of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in (hidden from) his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do (to give account).’ (Heb. 4:12-13)

Wow! What powerful, enlightening and remindful scriptures! So let’s see what all of it means. Listen to the scholars. ‘4:12-13.For the word of God: The reason given for one’s careful scrutiny of his life involves the reality that God is intently scrutinizing it. His word is quick (living). This word is first in the Greek and is the emphasis. God’s Word is not old or archaic; it is alive. It is not inept or inactive; it is powerful (active). It reaches into the inner secrets of man’s mind to discern even his thoughts and intents. Likewise, God’s eye sees man as though he were naked, unable to hide behind excuse or pretense.’

Now friends, that reality alone, that God can see right down into our very souls and discern our thoughts and intentions, see us as though we were naked, ought to give us serious pause and make us truly consider the way we live our lives. And don’t forget, that at the judgement day, we have to stand before Him and give account of our lives. So we cannot come with any excuses or lies, because He will know every single thought, intention and action we’ve ever done.

And then, based on verse 12, re the ‘Immaterial Part of Man,’ the scholars further offer: ‘The writer here draws an interesting parallel between the joints and the marrow, which have different functions, yet both are part of a human’s bone structure. Thoughts and intents are also two distinct activities, yet both are activities of the mind. And while the soul and spirit are distinct in function, both have an immaterial character (nothing you can actually touch or see).

When considering the nature of humanity, we must realize a person is a two-part being, that is, with body and soul. But in activity or function the body, soul, and spirit of a person each has a different function. Paul desired that his converts’ “whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thess. 5:23). (First Ref. Gen. 2:7; Primary Ref. 1Thess. 5:23; cf. Prov. 4:23).’

So what does it all mean eh? That since we will stand and give an account of our earthly behaviour, that we ought to try and make that earthly behaviour as good and blameless as possible. The Lord knows we will never be perfect, because He made us as imperfect beings, but He does expect us to try our best as we have daily communion with Him.

And since I like to spoon feed us so much, (smile) I am going to quote the two verses of scripture that the scholars mentioned above there. The first one says: ‘And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.’ (Gen. 2:7) That’s how man came alive – both in body and soul; by receiving the breath of the living God! The material or mortal body dies, but the soul is immaterial, immortal and lives on forever.

And next up, in the words of Cousin Sol: ‘Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.’ (Prov. 4:23) And per the scholars: ‘4:23. Heart could often be translated “mind” in the book. Since the Hebrews had no separate word for “mind,” the word “heart” often served to represent the seat of the intellect. The key to the whole man is his mind. Whatever captures the mind captures the man.’

And that’s the indisputable, gospel truth my people! Whatever our minds focus on, that’s where our lives will lead. Hence the truthful saying, ‘The battlefield of the mind.’ And that’s why the enemy strives to gain control of our minds above all else. But let’s remember that God’s word is stronger than anything in this world, and that through prayer and thanksgiving we can fight the enemy mano-a-mano and defeat Him. We just have to set our minds to it.

And for those of us who have made that marvellous decision, let’s go home now declaring (yeahhh!!!) our Tuesday Mantra, proudly and sincerely telling the whole wide world who and whose we are. As one strong voice: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’

That means we now have to go out and put our big talk into action; sharing Jesus’ amazing LOVE and friendship with others, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do. Much LOVE!

…to sincerely know Jesus…is to LOVE Him…LOVE Him like nothing…or no one else in this whole wide world…

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit 19 February 2019 1 Samuel 16:7.

19 Feb 2019 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a redeemed heart, according to his ways, anoint David king, assurance, be perfect, beloved of God, captures the man, captures the mind, courage, Eliab, for good measure, friend of Jesus, give to every man, God judges fairly, hang on, hangovers, happiness, heart, I have refused him, imperfect beings, in the face of adversity, incurably wicked, joyfulness, keep thy heart, langniappe, live in, look not on his countenance, man looks on the outward appearance, merciful to friend and foe, new broom sweep clean, not our final destination, old broom know the corners, paid for his failures, proper fellowship with God, right with God, Samuel, secret motives of our hearts, see the shadow, set him adrift, share His love, sinful hearts, test the mind, the devil rules our spirit, the heart is deceitful, the height of his stature, the issues of life, the Lord looks on the heart, the Lord said to Samuel, the Lord seeth not as man seeth, the quiet sense of self-esteem, the sun will shine again, this life, tiredness, trust Jesus, try the reins, try to fool the Lord, Tuesday Mantra, unrepented sin, unresolved, with all diligence

1 Samuel 16:7. But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.

And after the long weekend, I do hope that those of you who have to go to work today will make it without too many problems – read, hangovers, tiredness etc. (smile) Well my trusty desktop seems to be working decently again…Praise the Lord!

Yes, I know it’s old and out of fashion and all that, but it’s like the old saying, new broom sweep clean, but old broom know the corners! And I’m just more familiar with my desktop than my laptop. The former just knows what I want to do and where I want go, especially when it comes to writing the Bit. (smile)

Now here’s an interesting question for us from Gramps Schuller (Dr. Robert H. Schuller) from his Hour of Power Devotional. I don’t know if I’ve ever posed it before, but I was led to do so today. And the question is ‘Are You Happy?’ I guess though we should pose it as being joyful, since happiness is based more on our circumstances than our beliefs.

You can read it any which way you want, but this is how Gramps Schuller put it, and it does ask a very good question which most of us should be asking ourselves. Listen up: ‘Happiness – that deep inner strength that is made up of courage, faith, hope, and peace. Mix them together, and you have happiness. Happiness – the courage to hang on in the face of severe adversity!

Happiness – the faith that God will have the last word, and it will be good! Happiness – the hope that even though you can only see the shadow, someday the clouds will clear away and the sun will shine again! Happiness – the quiet sense of self-esteem that comes when you know you have done your best.

Happiness – the assurance that you have been merciful and kind to enemy and friend alike. Happiness – the quiet assurance that God will be merciful and kind to you, too. Happiness – the beautiful belief that this life, no matter how difficult it may be, is not your final destination.’

Yes friends, if we can answer yes to all of them, then we are giants of our faith! But I doubt that most of us can answer all those questions in the affirmative. The important thing though is that we can definitely answer ‘yes’ to some, and that we are working courageously and sincerely on the others.

Our God doesn’t expect us to be perfect, because He knows that He created us as imperfect beings, but He does insist that we try to come up as high as possible. That’s why He looks at the secret motives of our hearts rather than our outward actions to judge our sincerity. And the Lord made that quite clear long time ago, when He sent Samuel to anoint one of the sons of Jesse to be the new king of Israel.

When Samuel saw Eliab looking big and strapping and king-like, He said this must be the one. ‘But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.’

There we have it friends, right from the Lord’s mouth. So I don’t know why so many of us still try to fool the Lord with wonderful outward actions when our hearts are dark and black with unresolved, unrepented sin! We can fool our fellow man a lot of the time, but we can’t fool God at any time because He looks at the true story that’s hidden deep inside our sinful hearts!

That’s why the Lord chose Bruh David to be the king over his brothers; He knew that his heart was right, as right as a human heart could be, and why, in spite of all Bruh David’s mistakes He never set him adrift, though he certainly paid for his failures.

And sadly, that’s what happening to too many of us believers today; our hearts aren’t really right with God. We put on a great Christian show on the outside, but on the inside the devil rules our spirit.

As Jeremiah so famously said on the Lord’s behalf: ‘The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked (incurably sick): who can know it? I the Lord search the heart, I try (test) the reins (mind), even to give to every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.’ (Jer.17:9-10) I think that’s as clear as it can get.

But the scholars offer this explanation: ‘17:9-10. The heart (cf. Prov.4:23) means man’s innermost being. The bent of man’s natural disposition, apart from God’s redeeming grace, is described as deceitful (lit. crooked) and desperately wicked (incurably sick).

Therefore, man cannot trust his own heart but must leave all to God who alone knows the heart and judges all men fairly. Only a person with a redeemed heart can live in proper fellowship with God (Job 11:13; 1 John 3:18-24).’

Please take a moment and check out those two scriptures my fellow believers, for they get right to the heart of the matter! (smile) And I’ll throw in this langniappe (li’l extra) for good measure. (smile)

Listen to Cousin Sol: ‘Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.’ (Prov.4:23) Yes friends, the heart is the figurative seat of our intellect and that in turn controls our minds. We therefore need to keep tight control of our minds, because that’s where all of the battles are fought.

And having said all that, let’s go home declaring (right ho) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the entire world know who and whose we are. In full voice with sincere hearts and a strong sense of purpose:

‘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!’

And if our hearts are right, then let’s go out and action those statements, as Jesus desires of us. Much LOVE!

…whatever captures the mind…captures the man…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 1 July 2017 Psalm 119:34.

01 Jul 2017 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living Tags: a merry-go-round of sickness, a positive way, Anselm's quotes, ask, big pharma, british north america act, charles stanley, consequences, covet, Dominion of Canada, don't worry about the future, drugs, eat and sleep well, endeared Him to me, exercise regularly, faith, give me understanding, give yourself, God's will, grow in faith, Happy Birthday Canada, have faith in god's promises, have not, heart body and soul, imperfect beings, keep thy law, kill, knock, learn to take criticism, living for God, lust, obedience, obey God, observe it, positive emotions, pride, seek, shrinks, social media, something productive to offer, start your day, stay practical, surrender, technological age, test our faith, the best big country in the wrld, the desires of my heart, the Holy Spirit, the last minute, The Lord's timing, the wisdom of God, therapy, times of trial, tomorrow will take care of itself, trust, understanding, with my whole heart, worldliness, ye ask not

Psalm 119:34. Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law; yea, I shall observe it with my whole heart.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CANADA!

Happy Birthday to You! Happy Birthday to You! Happy One fiftieth Dear Canada! Happy Birthday to You! Yeh friends, Canada is one hundred and fifty years old today!

That takes us back to July 1. 1867 when the British North America Act was signed, paving the way for the Confederation of the three separate colonies of Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick to become the Dominion of Canada. And what a colourful history it has complied over the years; both good and bad, and is now aspiring to move to the forefront in this new technological age.

And regardless of what anybody else says or thinks, I will keep on saying that right now, it is the best big country in the world. Matter done! (smile)

So let’s move on to some of our friend Anselm’s quotes of this past week nuh, as he tries to inspire us to a better tomorrow. And this first one is rather appropriate. ‘Start your day in a positive way.’ Simple and to the point my brethren! There’s no better way to begin our day than on a positive note.

And that leads us to this long one. ‘Mindfully move through your day. When you spend your time in the present moment then it becomes so much easier to access positive emotions and to stay practical about what you can actually do about something in your life.’

But it’s true. We need to live much more in the present than in the past or the future. What did Jesus say, words to the effect that we should not worry about the future, but more about today, for tomorrow will take care of itself. (Matt.6:34)

That then leads to this wise advice. ‘Exercise regularly and eat and sleep well.’ Now that is godly wisdom that too many of us refuse to follow in this oh so busy world, where everything is go, go, go! And the big pharma companies and shrinks are making a killing on all the therapy, drugs and over the counter stuff we use to counter the effects of poor sleeping, eating and exercising habits.

And this last quote is very useful: ‘Learn to take criticism in a healthy way.’ But we need to take it with a grain of salt, because there are a lot of folks out there who just like to criticize, but don’t have a clue what they’re talking about. And it’s getting even worse with all the social media and evolving technology, where everybody is a critic. So just make sure you listen to someone who has something productive to offer.

And there is no better way of acquiring discernment than by following the advice of our Bit and sincerely asking the Lord: ‘Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law; yea, I shall observe it with my whole heart.’

Yeh friends, when you have the wisdom of God flowing through you, accentuated by His Holy Spirit, you can work wonders and move mountains! And how do we come by that awesome wisdom of God?

Listen as James explains it. ‘If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not (without reproach); and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering (not doubting). For he that wavereth (doubts) is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways.’ (James 1:5-8)

Oh my brethren, godly wisdom is easy to come by, we just have to ask the Lord for it, but we have to do so in strong faith, not doubting. Jesus said: ‘Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For everyone that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.’ (Matt.7:7-8)

Yes my fellow believers, we need to sincerely ask and seek and knock, otherwise we won’t receive much. And James admonishes us when he talks about worldliness’ and pride. ‘Ye lust, and have not: ye kill (murder), and desire to have (covet), and cannot obtain: ye fight and war (battle), yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts (pleasures).’ (James 4:2-3)

Oh friends, it’s all right there in black and white: we don’t receive because we don’t ask, and when we do ask, we ask for the wrong things, things that are not in the will of God! And it’s obvious that if we ask for things outside of God’s will, He will not grant them to us. So we try to do stuff on our own and fail miserably. What a waste of time and effort friends, when we could be getting good things from God.

And you know it all boils right back down to Jesus’ advice: ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness: and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt.6:33) And I can tell you from personal experience my fellow believers, once you sincerely try living for God, there won’t be a whole lot of things you’ll have to ask Him for. He will provide most of what you need at the time you need it.

As I keep saying, my only problem with the Lord is His timing. Now I know without a doubt that He will show up on time, but too often He waits for the last minute! But I guess that’s just another way to test our faith.

Oh friends, our God is a good God; or rather a most excellent God! You just have to surrender your life to Him, trust Him and have faith in the promises in His word. And as you grow in faith, you’ll see the wonders He works in your life.

Right now the Lord has me on a merry-go-round of sickness, and I believe that He will eventually work it all out for my good, but what took me by surprise, and what has endeared Him even more to me, is that even in these times of trial, He is also helping to bring the desires of my heart to fruition!

And those are the desires that He placed there! So how can I not LOVE Him then eh mih breddren and try my best to please Him? And He will do the same for you, if you give yourself, heart, body and soul to Him. He doesn’t expect us to be perfect, for He knows He made us as imperfect beings, but He does ask for obedience, above all things. Much LOVE!

…as Uncle Charles (Charles Stanley) so eloquently puts it…obey God…and leave all the consequences to Him…

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