Today’s Scrip-Bit 30 May 2020 Luke 9:62.

30 May 2020 Leave a comment

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

Luke 9:62.    ​No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of heaven.

Well there’s a fierce battle going on outside between the bright morning sun and a huge dark cloud for supremacy over the day! Who’s going to win eh? Well that’s anyone’s guess! But whoever does, and our day continues with either rain or shine, it will undoubtedly be with our great God Jehovah still at its helm, still ruling the roost! And all God’s children said a loud, proud and grateful: ‘Praise the Lord!’ And we also have to be thankful that our friend Anselm has apparently risen from the dead, because he’s sent us a full slate of quotes this week, though some rather short and pithy (brief, concise) ones. (smile) 

So let’s look at them together nuh. Here’s the first one: ‘Dream it. Wish it. Do it.’ Yeah friends, in general, that’s how we ought to operate. You dream the dream…then wish upon it, hoping and believing that God and man will support you…then you go out and put that dream plan into action with the help of God and man! Oh, it does seem so simple and easy eh. But in reality, it very seldom is because according to this next quote: ‘Success doesn’t just find you. You have to go out and get it.’ 

And that’s for certain sure! Success doesn’t usually come a looking for you, you have to get up off your fanny and go looking for it, seeking it wherever it may be hidden. And all of this assumes that you are doing it with the help of the Good Lord, for if you aren’t, success is even more difficult to locate and make your own. That’s why Cousin Sol wisely advised us to: ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths (make them straight).’ (Prov. 3:5-6) 

Now, considering all the problems, trials and tribulations we will face in this world – even Jesus acknowledged that in John 16:33 – those are incredibly wise and wonderful words of advice. And it leads us to the following quote: ‘Great things never come from comfort zones.’ Now that’s another certain sure thing! (smile) We never move on, move up, or achieve anything worthwhile in life without getting out of our comfort zones. It’s basic logic. How can anything be great if you don’t make an extra effort, extend yourself, put some elbow grease into it eh? 

If you just snap your fingers and it happens, then it doesn’t usually fall into the category of great. Many of us can sit on our fat fannies and make things happen, but the real great and worthwhile ones always require that we get motivated and get up off our rear ends, and go that extra mile that Jesus advised us to go. And you know what? It’s strange but true, as this next quote correlates: ‘The harder you work for something, the greater you’ll feel when you achieve it.’ Mamacita! Now isn’t that the gospel truth! It surely is! 

The more elbow grease, the more blood, sweat and tears we put into a project, the greater the enjoyment we experience when it comes to successful fruition! And that’s why we work so hard to make projects successful! As we were saying above; li’l elbow grease means li’l satisfaction. As Jesus says: ‘and with what measure ye mete (use), it shall be measured to you again.’ (Matt. 7:2b). Granted, He was referring there specifically to justice, but my people, that principle works in almost every arena of life. Our rewards are usually measured by the effort we put into our plans. 

And then we come to this last and most important quote for this week: ‘Sometimes later becomes never.’ And isn’t that the living truth! Most of us can testify to that in spades. We say we’ll do something later, but that later so often turns out to be never. That’s where laziness and procrastination and negative emotions come into play. The duchess reminds me of it almost every day. I keep saying I’m going to do this or that, but always keep putting it off. Meanwhile, if she has something to do, even if she isn’t feeling well, she wants to get up and do it. 

And as I look around me right now in the office, I can think of numerous things I want to and have to do down here. And though they are too many for me to do all at once, if I would only get up off my fat fanny – well it’s not really fat – (smile) and do more than I’m currently doing, I would feel much better, get more satisfaction from my efforts. But I keep saying, tomorrow, tomorrow… but tomorrow never seems to come…and I remain displeased with myself. So please learn from my procrastination. 

And that’s why Jesus said to the man who wanted to follow him, but first wanted to go and say goodbye to his family: ‘No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of heaven.’ Oh my people, when we begin a project, dream a dream, come to Jesus, or simply desire to succeed in some walk of life, we cannot afford to procrastinate, to tarry too long…or look back. Once we make a commitment to something or someone, we need to stick to it and do our best, keep looking and moving forward, with Jesus’ help of course. And yes, I’ve gotten the message: ‘Doctor, heal thyself!’ (smile) Much LOVE!

…no matter the roadblocks…be of good cheer…Jesus is always with you… 

P.S. What a way the Bit short today! (smile) Much LOVE!

Today’s Scrip-Bit 1 September 2018 Luke 9:23.

01 Sep 2018 Leave a comment

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

Luke 9:23.   And he (Jesus) said to them all, If any man will (desires to) come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

Cooler days are here again! You can bet your bottom dollar on that friends! Come September, the cool weather just explodes on us. Although in these times of climate change who knows what will happen. Yesterday evening though, I noticed that some maple trees in my area have already begun turning brown in preparation for the long, dry, cold, winter months. 

Do they know something that we don’t know! It’s possible. But not to worry, once we’re walking hand in hand with Jesus, we can face anything that comes against us, remember we’re conquerors in His Name! Glory to God! 

And with it being Saturday, let’s take a look at some of the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. Hear this first one: ‘Throw kindness around like confetti.’ 

Mama Mia! And if you’re a sincere follower of Jesus, that is exactly what you ought to be doing, for kindness is, was, and always will be the hallmark of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and if it’s not in your repertoire of attributes, then you’re not a sincere follower. 

And this next one says: ‘It is better to walk alone, than with a crowd going in the wrong direction.’ And that’s the gospel truth my brethren! You’re certainly better off alone than with the crowd going in the wrong direction. Some of us will remember being cautioned by our parents: ‘Don’t follow the crowd!’ And that’s usually wise advice, for the crowd is usually taking the easy way out, following Lucifer, and doing what they’re not supposed to do. 

So even if you get lonely treading that wise path that leads in the right direction, remember you’re NEVER really alone, because Jesus is ALWAYS with you, faithfully keeping His promises to never leave nor forsake you! Oh, our Jesus is so wonderful! How could we not LOVE Him eh! 

And this next quote reminds us to: ‘Remember, for everything you have lost, you have gained something else. Without the dark, you would never see the stars.’ Likewise friends, if we didn’t have rain, we would never appreciate the sun and its brilliant light. So please try to not focus so much on what you’ve lost, but on what you’ve gained through the loss. (smile) 

Now hear this tongue breaker: ‘One day it just clicks. You realize what’s important and what is not. You learn to care less about what other people think of you and more about what you think of yourself. You realize how far you’ve come and you remember when you thought things were such a mess that you would never recover. And you smile. You smile because you are truly proud of yourself and the person you’ve fought to become.’ 

Glory be for that day my brethren! That’s the day when we truly discover the Lord in our hearts! When we truly surrender our lives to Him and realize that He is ALL that really matters! Wow! What an enlightening day that usually is! 

And this last quote is the basis for our writing today: ‘Sometimes the right path is not the easiest one.’ And that’s no lie my fellow believers! The right path in this life is following Jesus, but hear what He says in our Bit for those who want to follow Him. ‘And he (Jesus) said to them all, If any man will (desires to) come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.’ 

Now that’s definitely not an easy row to hoe my people! That’s a daily denial of self! Note the young ruler who came to Jesus seeking eternal life. Note his sad, despondent reaction when Jesus told him eternal life would be his, if he sold his many possessions and gave to the poor, then came back and followed him. (Matt.19:16-22)

Unfortunately too many of us feel that way about our earthly possessions. But yuh see what Jesus went through on our behalf? It wasn’t easy for Him, even though He was God in human flesh. Now we most likely won’t go through as much ‘sufferation’ as He did, but we will definitely go through some, most likely more than we desire or care for. (smile) 

And Jesus didn’t mince words on the subject. He very clearly informed the disciples, and consequently all who came after, like us: ‘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) 

Wow! What reassuring words my breddren! Though He tells us very clearly that we will face trouble in this evil world, we’re not to worry about it, because He has overcome the world with His sacrificial death and resurrection. And even when trials come against us, if we’re sincerely walking with Him, we’ll find peace; the peace of God, which passes all human understanding, that shall keep (guard) our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.’ (Phil.4:7) 

Yeh friends, that peace is so special, that only true believers in Christ can experience it. Hear how Jesus explains it. ‘Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.’ (John 14:27) Yeh friends, that peace is not of this world, but it comes from the Prince of Peace, so it’s a mighty tool in the lives of believers. 

And we’ll close with some more authoritative words of Jesus, re our Bit. ‘For whosoever will (desires to) save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose (loses) his life for my sake, the same shall save it. For what is a man advantaged (benefited), if he gain the whole world, and lose himself (is destroyed), or be cast away (lost)?’ (Luke 9:24-25) 

Now that’s a very good question friends? Do we want to have all the earthly wealth and lose our eternal soul, be separated from our Triune God in eternity? For all our sakes, I hope not. That means we have to seriously buckle down, and each and every day, pick up our cross and walk with it, the way Jesus did with His, in true obedience to His Father’s will. Much LOVE!

…earthly life might be difficult…but the rewards of eternity with God are certainly worth it…