Today’s Scrip-Bit 25 June 2015 Joshua 1:8b

25 Jun 2015 Leave a comment

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

Joshua 1:8b.   …for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

Oh Friends, it’s Thursday! Wow! Another terrific day in the history of civilization is on the way! Glory to God!

So please, let’s give thanks, be glad and rejoice in this day, because it is the wisdom of the age. It just had to be since the Holy One of Israel has a specially prepared fount of blessings on tap for us today. We just have to be obedient to His will and He will shower us with bountiful blessings, show us an awesome time.

And all God’s children declared a loud, proud and grateful ‘Glory Hallelujah! All praise and thanks and honour to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords who sits upon His throne in the high heavens running things according to His wise and holy will!’

Yes my people, our God is indeed a great and magnanimous God! In fact, He is the ONLY TRUE God! And He’s also a LIVING God, which none of the other supposed gods are! It is His wonderful breath of life that courses through our bodies. That’s something we ought always to remember because it’s one of the foundation pillars of our faith.

Now here is an interesting quote on expecting success from Norman Vincent Peale (1898-1993), the famous American minister, author and champion of the ‘Power of Positive Thinking.’

‘Hope is the great power that can move you to success. Why? Because when a man expects to win, he does not hold anything back, but gives his project all that he’s got. Most people fail not because they lack ability, intelligence or opportunity, but they fail because they don’t give it all they’ve got.’

And isn’t that the absolute truth! For when we expect success we put all that we have into it; time, energy and money. It’s the very dedication to our project and the determination to succeed that leads us to success!

So for all of us who have projects on the go, and that includes the living of this earthly life, let’s be dedicated and determined to succeed nuh, obviously with the help of Jesus. And how do we enlist the aid of Jesus? Simply by turning to Him, putting all out trust and faith in Him.

As the Lord told Joshua several times when He anointed him to lead Israel after the death of Moses. ‘Be strong and of a good courage… Only be thou strong and very courageous… Have I not commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee withersoever thou goest.’ (Josh.1: 6, 7, 9)

So in the space of four verses, God warns Joshua three times to be strong and courageous and not afraid. Oh Friends, it’s the same thing that our great unchangeable God is saying to us today; ‘Be strong and of a good courage, and be not afraid.’ For we can’t do His bidding if we’re weak and fearful.

However my brethren, the clincher in the whole story is this verse, verse 8, from which our Bit comes. ‘This book of the law shall not depart out of (shall be constantly in) thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.’  (Josh.1:8)

Yeh Friends, you see the true and real way to be prosperous and have success: be strong and courageous, but even more importantly, meditate on the Lord’s Word day and night. It calls for manly strength and courage, as well as a strong and courageous faith centered in the Word of God. That is the ONLY way to have lasting prosperity and success!

Moses had already warned the Israelites re the choice of a king, and what His most important role was: ‘And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites:

And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear (stand in awe of) the Lord his God; to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them.

That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren (become proud), and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand, or to the left: to the end that he may prolong his days (continue long) in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel.’ (Deut.17:18-20)

One simply cannot rule or live justly without the guidance of the Good Book!

And Jesus reiterated that command in the Sermon on the Mount when He told us in no uncertain terms. ‘Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for (do not worry about) your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat (food), and the body more than raiment (clothes)? … But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt.6:25, 33)

Oh my people, how many times must we be reminded that the ultimate in wisdom and common sense decrees that we place our trust in our heavenly Father if we want to be successful in this world eh?

But in spite of it all, we still listen to Lucifer, the ole deceitful wolf in sheep’s clothing and believe, or act on the premise that you have to concentrate on the things of the world and the way the world thinks and acts, to make it. That’s a total lie my brethren!

The necessary material things will be provided for us by God, the Great Provider, if we concentrate on seeking and doing His will. And we won’t have to be fearful and anxious about our needs because the Father knows we need those things to survive, and He has promised that HE WILL provide them if we are true and faithful to His Word.

And what better way to end than with this powerful testimony from Bruh David from Psalm 37 – The true state of the wicked. ‘I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed (descendants) begging bread. He is ever merciful (merciful all the day), and lendeth, and his seed (descendants) is blessed. Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore.’ (Ps.37:25-27)

Oh Friends, all I can do now is to implore us to follow the wonderful advice we have received from several ever-faithful and reliable sources, if we truly desire to be prosperous and successful in this world. Much LOVE!

…true strength and power and prosperity…in other words earthly success…comes only from Almighty God…through obedience to His Word and Will…

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 30 August 2013 John 13:35

30 Aug 2013 Leave a comment

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

John 13:35.    By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have LOVE one for another.
 
Oh Friends, through the eternal LOVING-kindness of our heavenly Father, we’ve been granted another day on planet earth, with all its new mercies, blessings, and forgiveness! Wow!
 
And it plans to be either a bright, scorching hot summer’s day, or a hot rainy one, to kick off the last long summer weekend of this year, which culminates on Labour Day on Monday.
 
I’ve said that it could either be sunny or rainy because I’ve seen and heard forecasts for both types of weather. We definitely have to say some prayers for the poor weather forecasters yes, for their job was hard and unrewarding enough before, but now with the changing weather patterns that are devastating our world, it becomes an even more impossible task.
 
But Friends, be the day sunny or grey, it’s still Friday…
 
And that obviously brings forth joyful shouts from tired workers. ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday again yes! We’ve been working hard all week, and with this long Labour Day weekend on tap… Mama yo! We going to party down the place like we crazy!’
 
Oh mih breddren, please take care, we can’t let it all hang out like that, for remember the evil one is out there prowling, just trolling for defenceless victims, like the true predator that he is. And it’s in these throw down, anything goes party times that he catches us napping and very vulnerable to his wiles and lies.
 
So here’s Granny’s perennial warning, that most of us don’t like because we feel it inhibits us, but which we certainly cannot afford to set aside. ‘Son, drunk or sober, please mind yuh business.’ And that’s a most essential warning for this weekend my beautiful friends in Christ!
 
Now to tone down the party-hearty attitude somewhat, not to kill it completely, and thus get things in their right perspective, let’s chant our Friday Chant, with extra special emphasis for this long and dangerous Labour Day weekend.
 
All together now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
 
Yeh Friends, we definitely need to handle this weekend with a modicum of circumspection and prevention! And please, let’s wear our spiritual armour all the time! Don’t leave home without it! (smile) Because that’s the only way we can fight a good fight when the enemy calls us out to do battle.
 
And all that we do this day my people, please, pretty please, let’s do it with feelings and actions of LOVE nuh. For as Jesus tells us in our Bit: ‘By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have LOVE one for another.’
 
And I know that we all desperately want to be true disciples of Christ… but we aren’t ever going to be, if we’re not dealing in that wonderful emotion termed LOVE, the exciting, titivating and Christ-like attribute that makes the world go round.
 
Awright Friends, so I’m laying it on a bit thick, (smile) but isn’t that what LOVE is supposed be all about? But anyway, enough with the dilly-dallying, let’s get to the rest of the scriptures I promised yesterday.
 
And we’re going to begin with John, from his first epistle, re tests of true knowledge and LOVE, where he wisely declares: ‘And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
 
But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the LOVE of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also to walk, even as he walked.’ (1 John 2:3-6)
 
Yes Friends, that’s the conundrum many of us face. We claim to know Jesus, but we don’t keep His commandments, or walk as He walked here on earth, humble and LOVING, so therefore we’re liars and only fooling ourselves and each other.
 
And Bruh Paul had this to say to the Thessalonians: ‘But as touching brotherly LOVE ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to LOVE one another. And indeed ye do it toward all the brethren which are in all Macedonia: but we beseech you, brethren, that ye increase more and more;’ (1 Thess.4:9-10)
 
He didn’t need to teach them the rudiments of brotherly LOVE, because Christ Himself, through the indwelling of His Holy Spirit plus hearing of the Word had taught them that. And furthermore they were doing a good job of showing it towards the believers throughout all Macedonia.
 
What Bruh Paul expected of them was that they continually increased in the showing of that brotherly LOVE! 
 
AND MY PEOPLE, THE VERY SAME THING IS EXPECTED OF US TODAY!
 
Please note I put it in capitals and also highlighted it, because it’s very important that we understand the pre-eminent position that walking in LOVE plays in our discipleship of Christ, especially in these very trying and dangerous times. 
 
And since we have many more advantages and opportunities than the Thessalonians had, why can’t we, or aren’t we doing a better job than them of showing brotherly LOVE eh? Why are so many millions of people still suffering sickness, poverty, hunger and oppression all over God’s great earth eh? Possibly because we’re still too caught up in the selfish ways and material things of the world.
 
But if that’s so, then Friends, we’re not doing what Jesus expects of us, we’re not showing that we’re His true disciples. In fact we’re being more His dire enemies, because we’re turning others away from Him by our selfish, worldly ways.
 
And we’ll end with some of Cousin Sol’s wise words from his Song. And though in this particular instance, it pertains more to romantic than brotherly LOVE, it truly shows the power of ALL and ANY kind of real LOVE. Listen up now my brethren.
 
‘Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for LOVE is strong as death; jealousy is cruel (hard, severe) as the grave: the coals (flames) thereof are coals (flames) of fire, which hath a most vehement flame.
 
Many waters cannot quench LOVE, neither can the floods drown it: if a man should give all the substance (wealth) of his house for LOVE, it would be utterly contemned (despised).’ (Song 8:6-7)
 
Now this is what the scholars have to say about those two verses: ‘These verses are clearly the climax of the story. The maiden describes in the most vivid terms the unquenchable nature of true LOVE: it cannot be destroyed by death or the grave; it burns like a blazing fire that cannot be extinguished; and it cannot be bought.’
 
And that my fellow believers in Christ is everlasting truth! True LOVE cannot be bought or extinguished!
 
Let’s ponder on that today nuh, and see if we can’t improve on our own LOVE-walk, because then, and only then, will we be true disciples of Jesus Christ. Much LOVE!
 
…and his banner over me was…LOVE… (Song 2:4b)