Today’s Scrip-Bit   16 December 2023 John 14:6.

16 Dec 2023 Leave a comment

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

John 14:6.       I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

And it’s a perfect lazy-day Saturday morning; cloudy, cold and dry. Yes friends, all the elements we need to instigate laziness. (smile) But let’s hope that in that laziness we do take some time to communicate with our wonderful God, who’s given us the breath of life for another day. It’s a good day to spend time talking to our Maker, pouring out our hearts to Him, casting all our cares upon Him, as He’s recommended in His Word. (1 Pet. 1:7) And after emptying our souls to Him, rest quietly to hear what He has to tell us in answer to our doubts and fears. 

Now, it’s been said that that’s one of the believers’ biggest problems and mistakes; talking to God then quickly moving off to other things, instead of waiting to hear what the Lord has to say. Remember, it’s a conversation we’re having with the Father, and a conversation is usually a two way street. So please, let’s not rush off as soon as we finish uttering our cares, but stick around quietly and hear what the Father has to say, for He will say something, and you cannot afford to miss anything the Lord has to say. (smile) 

And, in preparation for that outpouring of our personal cares, let’s raise up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer to heaven, with strong conviction and true sincerity. As one voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’ 

Now, let’s rest a moment and allow what we’ve said to truly sink into our consciousness, as the Lord does quiet our souls and raises our awareness of His LOVING presence. Ah mih people, what a wonderful God we serve! Who else but Jehovah God would make His presence so tangibly felt to His followers eh? Nobody! And He does it all through the power of the third person of the Holy Trinity, the Holy Spirit, which dwells within us to lead, guide, comfort, and make known the desires and plans of the Father. 

What an awesome team is our Triune Godhead! The Father plans and directs; the Son, Jesus came to earth and did the dirty, sacrificial work, taking the sins of the whole world on His sinless shoulders; then the Holy Spirit comes along to do the everyday work to enable believers to communicate with the Father and stay safe under the refuge of His mighty wings! You couldn’t find a better team than that friends, that’s why it’s ever so necessary and important to accept Christ as Lord and Saviour, then follow the lead and guiding of the Holy Spirit, who comes to dwell within you, once you’ve accepted Christ as the number One priority in your life! 

And why is that you ask? Because Jesus died to pay for our sins, and only if we accept Him as Lord and Saviour will we be entitled to spend eternity with Him in heaven. Otherwise we’ll be headed straight for hellfire, death and damnation with Satan, meaning eternal separation from God, which is the worst possible thing that can happen to a human soul. Jeus warned us so often of that terrible fact during His sojourn here on earth. For instance, He declared (chuh!!!) to the disciple called Doubting Thomas and also to us in no uncertain words: ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.’ (John 14:6) 

What’s in that not to understand eh mih bredrin? Jesus is the ONLY WAY that a human being or soul can get into the presence of the Father. That means, if you don’t accept Jesus as Lord and Saviour, then you’ll never even see the pearly gates of heaven, much less enter them! And per the way to get to heaven, Jesus further tells us: ‘Enter ye in at the strait (narrow) gate: for wide is the gate and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait (narrow) is the gate, and narrow (difficult, confined) is the way, which leadeth unto life (eternal), and few there be that find it.’ (Matt. 7:13-14)  

Ah friends, what else must Jesus do and say to make us believe that His way is the best option in this world eh? And I like how this commentary explains those two verses. ‘The wide gate of the world promises life and happiness but delivers destruction. The way of Christ requires that we lay our lives down, but in that sacrifice we find a reward of (eternal) life. Sadly, the gate that is wide and the way that is broad is the one most people travel. That way leads to destruction.’ Yes mih bredrin, because the gate to Christ and eternal life is so narrow and ofttimes hard to negotiate, fewer people travel it, and thus are led to their destruction, to eternal separation from God. 

Meanwhile in the gospel of Luke Jesus words on the subject are recorded thus: ‘And he (Jesus) went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that are saved? And he said unto them. Strive to enter in at the strait (narrow) gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek  to enter in, and shall not be able. When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without (outside), and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not, whence are ye (where are you from). 

Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are (where you are from); depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Issac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out. And they shall come from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God. And, behold, there are last which shall be first, and there are first which shall be last.’ (Luke 13:22-30) 

Oh my people, if after reading and hearing all of Jesus’ words, we still refuse to accept Him as Lord and Saviour and don’t endeavour to walk the straight and narrow path, then we have no one else but ourselves to blame, when we are thrust out of God’s kingdom and lay there weeping and gnashing our teeth, foolishly thinking that because we were in the upper echelons of society, a power broker, we would automatically get to enter heaven. Unfortunately though, those who were far below us but accepted Jesus and walked the straight and narrow path will be greeted first at the pearly gates. 

Please let this be a lesson to us all: our positions here on earth don’t mean a thing in heaven. What’s important is our personal relationship with Jesus. And if you don’t have one, you’d better get one, RIGHT NOW, before it’s too late! That’s the wisdom of the ages! Much LOVE!

…following Jesus is not easy…but it’s the ONLY WAY to heaven… 

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   1 July 2023 Matthew 16:6.

01 Jul 2023 Leave a comment

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

Matthew 16:6.       Then Jesus said to them, Take heed and beware of the leaven (yeast) of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

HAPPY CANADA DAY!

Well friends, this Lazy -day Saturday has certainly opened into a bright and sparkling summer’s day, although with some warnings of smoke. But, despite that negative attachment, it promises to be a wonderful celebration of our country’s birthday! So, a Happy Canada Day to all you my Scrip-Bit friends and families! May the Lord bless us with all we need to enjoy this memorable weekend, as we remember that Canada is still one of the few countries you can move around with a fair amount of freedom and without too much provocation re racial and religious and political matters. 

And most of all, let’s remember the One who gave us all the good things that we have; Almighty God, and give Him the proper thanks, praise and reverence that He deserves. Now, as one sincere voice, let’s say our Lazy-Day Saturday prayer. ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’ 

Oh my faithful brethren, every time we say that prayer, it touches something deep within me. I guess it just seems to bring us closer to our heavenly Father in real time. And it seems to be ever so appropriate for a lazy-day Saturday, where we have no pressing commitments, so we can afford to relax and spend some satisfying quiet time with our Creator and Provider, our Comforter and place of Refuge. And I hope you all feel the same way, and do spend some quiet time with the One who LOVES us so much that He sacrificed His only Son Jesus for our benefit. 

And do I ever LOVE the Good Library, for as always, when I don’t know what to say and I open it, it always points me to something interesting. And today it opened unto the 16th Chapter of Matthew where Jesus had just finished berating the Pharisees and Sadducees re asking for a sign from heaven, an outward miraculous manifestation, then left them standing in awe and confusion. (Matt. 16:1-4) Then He went on to warn the disciples to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. 

The Good Library relates it thus: ‘And when his disciples were come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread. Then Jesus said to them, Take heed and beware of the leaven (yeast) of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have taken no bread. Which when Jesus perceived, he said unto them. O ye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have brought no bread? Do ye not yet understand, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets ye took up? Neither the seven loaves of the four thousand and how many baskets you took up?’ (Matt. 16:5-10) 

And it is indeed amazing that the disciples could forget the two miracles Jesus did with little food to serve a multitude and then have plenty left over. And those miracles you can find in several of the gospels, but for easy access, I’ll just quote them from Matthew; Chapter 14:15-21 and Chapter 15:32-38. So they should have realized that it really had nothing to do with them not bringing bread, for if the situation truly warranted it, Jesus had the awesome power to provide actual bread for them, to fill all their physical needs and still have much left over. 

But their young, uneducated minds never considered those things, thus Jesus had to explain it further to them. ‘How is it that ye do not understand that I spake it not to you concerning bread, but that ye should beware of the leaven (yeast) of the Pharisees and Sadducees? Then understood they how he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine (teaching) of the Pharisees and Sadducees.’ (Matt. 16:11-12) And yuh know what my fellow believers, that warning of Jesus still holds true for all of us today, because there are still many out there who are teaching a false or incorrect gospel, one slanted to their own unscrupulous desires. 

That leads us to these prophetic words of Bruh Paul to Timothy. ‘This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous (money lovers), boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, truce-breakers (irreconcilable), false accusers (slanderers), incontinent (without self-control), fierce (brutal), despisers of those that are good, 

Traitors, heady (reckless), highminded (haughty), lovers of pleasures more than (rather than) lovers of God: Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof, from such turn away. For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts. Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.’ (2 Tim. 3:1-7) 

Oh my bredrin, I don’t know if these are the last days or not, because there are many arguments over the signs etc., but what I do know for sure is that all those things Bruh Paul warned Timothy about are very rampant in our current world. And if you don’t see them, then you’re living with your head in the sky or in the dirt. Lawlessness and irresponsibility are at unbelievable heights. Promises are made and broken without remorse. Pleasure is our number one activity. And we boast so much about what we don’t have that it’s shameful. 

Oh friends, apostasy, that’s abandonment and renunciation of our religious beliefs is definitely alive and well. You see people all over the place turning away from God, and there’s even a foolish movement afoot to try and completely rid our society of God. Hn! That’s undoubtedly a fool’s wisdom! For it will never happen, because God will never allow it. He might allow us to do all sorts of other nonsense, but rid the society of His awesome presence…NEVER! 

And we’ll close with a couple of explanations from the scholars on those verses above. They say that ‘A form of godliness is mere religion without power or spiritual life. Paul commands Timothy to turn away from those false teachers who prey upon silly women laden with sins, who are especially susceptible to false teachers. Ever learning and never coming to the knowledge of the truth condemns not intense study, but some esoteric quest for truth apart from God’s word.’ 

And is there ever much questing for truth today my fellow saints. Never knew there could be more than one truth. But everybody seems to have their own truth in these perilous times. And those who don’t have it, are unfortunately searching for truth in all the wrong places, when it’s right in front of their very faces, in the Word of God! Much LOVE!

…hereby knoweth ye the Spirit of God…every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh…is of God… (1 John 4:2)    

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   3 June 2023 Jeremiah 29:13.

03 Jun 2023 Leave a comment

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

Jeremiah 29:13.       And ye shall seek me and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

Well friends, it looks like this lazy-day Saturday is going to be another hot, dry, sunshiny summer’s day. Mother Earth is crying out for some water, for some respite from the lack of heavenly blessings, and I’m crying out for an end to the allergy nonsense that’s been harassing me all week. I haven’t had any allergy problems like this for years, and the sneezing, weepy eyes and runny nose are rather inconvenient and positively annoying. (smile) And the medication only seems to relieve it for such a short time. Chuh! But as they say: that’s life! And we just have to grin and bear it as best we can. 

And by the way, I have decided to use that prayer I shared last Saturday from the In Touch Devotional as our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, since it seems appropriate for a quiet, lazy, relaxing, God-filled day. (smile)  However, unlike our other Scrip-Bit Prayers, this one will come at the beginning rather than at the end. So, without further ado, let’s pray our Lazy-day Saturday Prayer. 

As one sincere voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’ 

Yes mih people! I like it, because it’s calming and soothing and takes us into the presence of God, where we diligently seek to find and know Him, which is exactly what He says He desires of us. And we can find one instance of that scripture in Jeremiah 29, where the Lord promises the Israelites their captivity in Babylon will only last for seventy years, then they will return home. 

‘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). Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall pray unto me, and I will hearken unto (listen to) you. And ye shall seek me and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.’ (Jer. 29:11-13) 

Yes my fellow believers, our God desires us to seek and search for Him with all our heart, that’s diligently. And what does diligently seeking God mean? ‘It means we keep seeking God until we find Him, not resting until we hear from Him in our situation or circumstance. Doing something “diligently” means doing it energetically and persistently.’ 

Now, how many of us can truly say that’s how we are seeking God eh, if we are seeking Him at all? Are we truly seeking Him with all of our heart, or diligently, in these evil and trying times eh? It’s certainly not as many as ought it to be, otherwise our sway and power, that’s God word in the world would be much stronger. 

And why do we need to seek God, besides His command? This commentary tells it nicely. ‘You long to be noticed, understood, and valued – to feel at home. When we feel out of place – like exiles – God is listening to us. He reminds us of his presence and his promise to bring us home.’ 

Oh, that’s for sure my fellow believers! And it’s just a reflection of our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, where we’re in an uncomfortable, unsure frame of mind, and need assurance of our worth and value, that someone out there truly LOVES and desires the best for us…and that someone is God Almighty! He is the ONLY One that LOVES us in that understanding and unconditional manner. All those others who claim to LOVE us have conditions attached to their LOVE, but not our heavenly Father. 

That’s why we can behave unseemly, inappropriately and His LOVE for us will not change. Oh, we will pay a price for our disobedience, but that doesn’t change His LOVE one iota. Our heavenly Father practices what I believe we call tough LOVE. That’s means His LOVE is steadfast, but you won’t get away with nonsense, you will pay for your disobedience. And oh, how I wish that more of us earthly parents had practiced tough LOVE on this current generation, for they would certainly not have been as irresponsible, entitled and ungodly as they are. But that’s another sermon for another time. (smile) 

And as always, Cousin Sol has something to cover every scripture. For our scripture of diligently seeking God, he says: ‘I LOVE them that LOVE me; and those that seek me early (diligently) shall find me.’ (Prov. 8:17) There’s no doubt about that my people! 

And the psalmist in Psalm 91, concurs with all that we’ve been saying, when he wrote these marvellous words of reassurance in our wonderful God. ‘Because he hath set his LOVE upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. With long life (length of days) will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.’ (Ps. 91:14-16) 

Mama Mia! That’s what we get for seeking God diligently and sincerely my faithful brethren! We all want honour and safety and long life and salvation, and we go about seeking it either on our own or through man’s unfaithful help, but the surest way to get that is by sincerely and diligently seeking God. It’s the gospel truth friends! And there’s no better way to end this lazy-day Saturday, than with these astounding words of truth and faith from Jesus as He winds down His Sermon on the Mount. 

He sincerely advises: ‘Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?’ (Matt. 7:7-11) 

That says it all friends! And I’m pleading with us, on this lazy-day Saturday, let’s take some time to ponder our relationship to our heavenly Father, consider whether we are truly seeking Him diligently and sincerely, in other words, with all of our hearts, because the quality of our lives depend on it, as that’s what we were made for! Much LOVE!

…God created man…to seek Him…above everything else… 

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   27 May 2023 John 14:18.

27 May 2023 Leave a comment

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

John 14:18.       I will not leave you comfortless (as orphans): I will come to you.

Well friends, a blessed Pentecost lazy-day Saturday to you. And if there ever was cause for a lazy day in these parts, this was it, because it’s not only gloriously bright and sunshiny, but you can also feel the heat from the rays of the sun. I went out earlier today to our annual Pentecost Prayer Breakfast and as soon as I got outside, I could feel the sun’s hot rays, and eventually had to take off the light jacket I was wearing. 

And it was a wonderful Prayer Breakfast, with lots of good fellowship, plenty singing and moving, with uplifting prayer and encouraging speeches from our Host Priest, Father Jeff, and the guest speaker, Roshni, a young female priest, a recent incumbent from a nearby parish. It’s good to see young women going into the service of God. The food was also plentiful and excellent, with the result that after I came home, I had to lie down and rest before I could even consider writing the Bit. 

But I’m up and about now, fresh and rearing to go. (smile) And I want to begin with this beautiful and very appropriate prayer for this lazy-day Saturday, that I found in this month’s In Touch Devotional. So please pray with me. ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’ 

Wow! Isn’t that a beautiful and heartfelt prayer my people! It most certainly is! And I even considered making it our regular Lazy-day Saturday Prayer. (smile) But I haven’t quite made up my mind on that. Will have to check with the Big Boss about it. And the last line of that prayer reminded me of these heartwarming and encouraging words of the song, ‘No One Ever Cared For Me Like Jesus, sung by Christian songstress, Grace Brumley of the Family Worship Centre in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. 

The song emphasizes these wonderful and oh so true sentiments. ‘The longer I serve Him, the sweeter He grows. The more that I LOVE Him, more LOVE He bestows. Each day is like heaven, my heart overflows. The longer I serve Him, the sweeter He grows.’ Mama Mia! 

Oh my fellow believers if you don’t experience that amazing experience while walking with Jesus, then something’s seriously wrong with your walk. For I can personally testify to those overwhelming sentiments. Each day you get up and decide to continue following Jesus is like a brand-new experience. As I keep reminding us, truly walking with Him is not always easy, but it’s always interesting and adventuresome. And that’s better than easy any day! 

And I believe that’s a good way to judge your maturing or is it maturation (smile) in Christ. If you’re not feeling more joyful and Spirit-filled as your time with Him goes by, then you’re not doing something right, or something’s simply missing from your walk. Because as we grow in Christian maturity, we are supposed to become even more Spirit-filled and obedient to God’s Will and Word, which in turn ought to bring us greater, peace, LOVE and joy. 

And with this Pentecost Sunday upon us, where the Holy Spirit first indwelled believers, we ought to be concerned with walking in the Spirit of God, the third member of our Holy Trinity and constantly being led, guided, refueled and replenished by Him. And I guess tomorrow the fireworks will be happening all over the world as we celebrate that most memorable day in our Christian faith. (smile) 

But please, let’s not get carried away by the drama of the situation, but stay more focused on what the dramatics actually did; that’s bring God’s Spirit, the Comforter and Helper that Jesus promised His disciples after He returned to heaven. ‘If ye LOVE me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father to give you another Comforter (Helper), that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless (as orphans): I will come to you.’ (John 14:15-18) 

Yes friends, the Holy Spirit then surrounded the disciples and the other believers, but eventually it was going to come and dwell within them and give them the great power and authority they needed to carry out His Great Commission. That’s why, before His ascension back to heaven, Jesus told them, not to depart from Jerusalem, ‘but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence….

But ye shall receive power, after (when) the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld (looked on), he was taken up: and a cloud received him out of their sight. ’ (Acts 1:4-5; 8-9) And ten days later on Pentecost Sunday, which we will celebrate tomorrow, that marvellous promise came true! 

Wow! Doesn’t that renew and strengthen your faith in Christ? It most surely should, making you believe more than ever that He is indeed whom He says He is, and will indeed do the things He’s promised to do! Please, let’s take a li’l time today and ponder the state of our faith nuh, and see if we’re growing, stagnating or backsliding, for in the tempting and evil world in which we’re currently living, we need to be continually monitoring our Christian faith! Much LOVE!

…each day we spend with Christ should be like heaven…for the longer we serve Him…the sweeter He grows… 

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

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