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Today’s Scrip-Bit 15 December 2022 Psalm 118:8.

15 Dec 2022 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a compassionate heart, curse, divine protection, fear not, fearmongering, go ye therefore and teach all nations, good friends, he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him, I will not fear, it is better to trust in the Lord, LOVE, Mother Nature, negative word, peace be still, proclaim christ, prosper, put confidence in princes, send faith to answer when fear comes knocking, strife-filled situations, succeed, than to put confidence in man, the devil's stranglehold on the world, the divine storm calmer, the Great Commission, the Lord is on my side, the middle verse of the Bible, Thursday Blessings, thy faith hath made thee whole, what can man do unto me, with God all things are possible, without faith it is impossible to please God

Psalm 118:8. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. (the middle verse of the Bible)

Well friends, today, Thursday, the penultimate day of the workweek is supposed to bring us a big snowstorm. Thankfully though, so far we’ve only seen wind and freezing rain in my area. But if the weather forecast holds true, the evening commute home will be terrible. Let’s hope and pray that they are somewhat wrong about the intensity of the storm. And why would we desire an intense physical storm when we already have so many intense emotional and spiritual ones eh?

No way! However, those latter storms can be lessened and controlled by being in association with Jesus Christ, the divine storm calmer. But the physical ones are a different story. Oh, He can calm those too, if He so desires, like he did back on the sea of Galilee, when ‘He rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. (Mark 4:39) But usually, in those cases, He allows Mother Nature to take her course without interference. (smile)

And I believe the best way to handle that situation is to have Jesus calm our own personal storms, so that we can concentrate on the physical ones around us. But you know another li’l ‘secrat’? Jesus can also help us handle the physical storms around us, help us to stay calm in them and navigate our way safely through them. And all God’s children gave a loud shout of gratitude: ‘All glory and honour be to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ who enables us to handle whatever storms come into our lives, be they physical, emotional or whatever!’

Ah friends, Jesus’ reach is infinite, and His awesome power is unimaginable, unstoppable, without end! As Jesus said so clearly when talking about it being easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter heaven. ‘With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.’ (Matt. 19:26) That my people, is one of the first things we need to believe when we come to Jesus. As Jesus said to the disciples after calming the storm we spoke of above. ‘Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? (Mark 4:40) But without that staunch faith, everything else is useless.

As the Big Library (smile) clearly spells it out in the book of Hebrews: ‘But without faith it is impossible to please him (God): for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.’ (Heb. 11:6) Yes my faithful brethren, we must believe that God exists and rewards those who diligently seek Him. And Hebrews goes on to give us examples of the patriarchs who exhibited that kind of strong faith in God and saw most of their dreams and His promises come true. People like, Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Moses, etc. etc.

And in these difficult, evil and turbulent times, it’s that kind of strong faith we believers need to stop the drain of people from Christ’s church, and instead bring them back to His fold, and also bring new believers to Him. But that can only happen if we the current and supposed faithful believers do our jobs; talk about Jesus to others and live the kind of life that will endear them to us and therefore to Him. We have to stop being lazy and lethargic, and override our fear of man and the world, and trust our heavenly Father to take care of us, as He’s so faithfully promised to do.

At this most important time in the annals of history, we believers need to grab the words of Psalm 118 and eat them, let them fill us up with faith. We must be able to unequivocally declare: (steups!!!) ‘I called upon the Lord in distress: the Lord answered me, and set me in a large (broad) place. The Lord is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me? The Lord taketh my part with them that help me: therefore shall I see my desire upon them that hate me. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.’ (Ps. 118:5-9)

Wow mih bredrin! That says it all right there! If we sincerely put our trust in Almighty God, we won’t fear what finite and frail man can do to us. And that brings us right to the crux of the problem: fear and faith; their interconnectivity. You simply can’t have both at the same time. It’s either one or the other; for fear kills faith and faith drives out fear. As they say, when faith comes a knocking, send faith to answer the door. And some of Jesus most popular words down here on earth were ‘Fear not.’

Yes friends, He was either telling people to not fear, or complimenting them on the strength and power of their faith. And you can find a great example of the latter in Mark 10:46-52, when the blind beggar Bartimaeus kept crying out to Jesus as He was passing through the streets of Jericho: ‘Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me.’ (Mark 10:47) Jesus finally had the blind man brought to Him and asked what he wanted. Without hesitation, he replied ‘Lord, that I might receive my sight. And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way, thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.’ (Mark 10:51-52)

Now that’s the kind of staunch and believing faith we need today. Unfortunately though, today’s church seems mostly filled with fear and very little faith, otherwise we would be more industrious in working and living for Jesus, and the devil would not have such a stranglehold on the world, especially on our children of this generation. Ah mih people, we can’t allow this fearmongering and strife-filled situation to continue in our world. It’s our job to clean it up. When Jesus comes back, He expects to find a strong, unified, and diligent church.

Has it ever occurred to us that the reason, or one of the reasons He has not yet returned, is that His church is weak, fearful, disunited and lazy? But even in our unfaithfulness, He’s seen it fit to shower us with undeserved blessings which enable us to do His earthly work. We call them our Thursday Blessings, and they need to be declared (chuh!!!) out loud to be activated. So, let’s do that right now nuh.

I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’

And I’m chuckling here as I think what a nightmare it would be if I had to write ‘declare’ (steups!!!) so often every week. Thanks for the power of copying. But seriously though my fellow saints, we now need to take those blessings and go out into this evil world and sincerely and diligently use them to proclaim Christ’s wonderful name and His magnificent gospel as we have been commissioned to do! Much LOVE!

…go ye therefore…and teach all nations…that’s our Great Commission…

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 December 2022 Luke 1:38.

08 Dec 2022 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a positive outlook on life, abundance, be it unto me according to thy word, behold the handmaid of the Lord, blessed art thou among women, creativity, curse, fear not, John the Baptist, LOVE, negative word, prepare ye the way of the Lord, reconciled back to God, supernatural wisdom, talent, the Lord is with thee, the Son of God, the throne of his father David, thou hast found favour with God, thou shalt call his name Jesus, thou that art highly favoured, Thursday Blessings, Zechariah doubted and was made dumb

Luke 1:38. And Mary said, Behold the handmaid (maidservant) of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word.

Then Thursday came on board, a mixture of sunshine and cloud, but nice and dry. It’s also another day in the Advent Season, one day closer to that miraculous time of Christmas. And the incarnate birth of Christ was nothing less than a marvellous miracle! A woman becoming pregnant without knowing a man, what else could that be eh? And to be a true believer in Christ, that’s one of the first things we need to believe; that Jesus was indeed the Son of God, with the sperm of God planted in His mother Mary’s womb by the Holy Spirit!

And if you are unable to believe that, then whatever else you believe is of no consequence, for that’s the foundation of the whole Christmas story, and the basis on which Christ was able to die for us, to redeem our sins and give us His righteousness. As the Good Book says: ‘For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.’ (2 Cor. 5:21) Yes friends, if Jesus wasn’t the de facto Son of God, but the son of a man, he would not have the power to pay for our sins, because a man born of a sinful man cannot pay for other men’s sins.

Remember too that since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden, all men have been born with a sinful nature, so how could a son of man pay for our sins eh? Impossible! But since with God all things are possible, He fashioned a rather innovative plan to redeem our sinful souls and reconcile us back to himself.

And the whole situation is certainly extremely interesting. It all began with God sending the angel Gabriel down to the city of Nazareth in Galilee, where he appears ‘To a virgin espoused (engaged) to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. And the angel came into unto her, and said, Hail (Rejoice), thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.’ (Luke 1:27-28)

Now, you can imagine our consternation in such a situation, even in this day when we know so much about God. Just think how Mary, a teenager from a relatively low-level family in a backward town in Galilee felt when the angel approached her with such a joyful greeting. The Good Book tells us: ‘And when she (Mary) saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind (considered) what manner of salutation (greeting) this should be.’ (Luke 1:29) Of course, we would all wonder why the address in such exalted terms.

‘And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS (Yahweh Is Salvation). He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest (Most High): and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: and he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.’ (Luke 1:30-33)

And you know what amazes me most about this whole story? Mary’s reaction! She didn’t go crazy and pull out her hair or shout and carry on. She simply took the whole thing in stride, especially knowing how her life would be terribly affected if she was found with child before she was married. And I just LOVE her cool, reasoned response. ‘Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?’ (Luke 1:34) She just got right down to brass tacks. How can I get pregnant if I don’t have sexual intercourse?

‘And the angel answered and said unto her, the Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest (Most High) shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing (one) which shall be born of thee, shall be called the Son of God.’ (Luke 1:35) And that’s how Jesus could be sinless, because He was conceived by God, although He was human in every other respect! But Gabriel wasn’t finished with his good news. He continued to Mary: ‘And, behold, thy cousin (relative) Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible.’ (Luke 1:36-37)

Oh my people, another miracle. John the Baptist’s mother Elizabeth had been barren until the Lord stepped in, until it was time for the prophecy as spoken by the prophet Malachi, regarding John the Baptist to be fulfilled. ‘Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts.’ (Mal. 3:1) And the scholars tell us that prophecy is uniformly applied to John the Baptist, the only prophet besides Jesus who was the subject of prophecy.

And Matthew in his gospel also acknowledged it, by writing of John the Baptist. ‘For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, (Is. 40:3) saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.’ (Matt. 3: 3) You see how our God had everything well planned, with John being born just before Jesus, so their paths could interact to fulfill His prophecy. But the best part of that whole conversation between Mary and the angel Gabriel was her last words to Him. ‘And Mary said, Behold the handmaid (maidservant) of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.’ (Luke 1:38)

Oh my fellow saints, that’s what you call mature faith, trust and surrender! And it’s oh so rare to be found in a such a young woman! She didn’t fight it, or throw any tantrums like so many of us would have done! She just calmly accepted the will of the Lord. Oh, how our lives would be so much better if we just accepted His will for our lives like Mary did. And it’s an interesting response, when contrasted with that of Zechariah’s, John the Baptist’s father. When the angel told hm the good news of his wife’s Elizabeth’s pregnancy and the important part his son would play, he doubted and was thus made dumb until the day of John’s christening. (Luke 1:11—25)

Ah friends, if we’d only believe, if we’d only believe and act on our belief. But there’s still hope for us. And our faithful God has given us the tools to help us believe, build our faith and witness to others. We call them our Thursday Blessings. So, let’s activate them by declaring (steups!!!) them right now nuh. As one voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance!

I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’

Now, let’s use those undeserved blessings to go out and show others how wonderful it is to be a child of God, a follower of Jesus Christ! Much LOVE!

…if God says to jump…our automatic reaction should be…how high Lord…

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit 1 December 2022 John 14:15.

01 Dec 2022 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a future and a hope, abundance, all things work together for good, be of good cheer, called according to His purpose, Chritain brotherhood, courage, creativity, curse, faith, favour, foundational scripture, God is not a man that he should lie, God's amazing faithfulness, He shall give you another Comforter, I go to prepare a place for you, i have overcome the world, I know the thoughts I think toward you, I will come to you, I will not leave you comfortless, if ye love me keep my commandments, in my Father's house are many mansions, Job didn't curse God, leave you as orphans, LOVE, negative word, Peace i leave with you, rain and cloudy skies, snow and sunny environs, Thursday Blessings, to give you an expected end, to them that love God, traces of white

John 14:15. If ye LOVE me, keep my commandments.

And I have to open today’s Bit on December first, 2022, with a chuckle. Why you ask? Because yesterday we were talking about the rain and snow situation in our northern climate, and were somewhat surprised but very appreciative for seeing rain and not snow, but noting that the white stuff will certainly come in due course. Well, some of it did come last evening as the rain ended. Not much, but enough to leave traces of white on the lawns and housetops this Thursday morning as the sun shines brightly in an unclouded sky.

That’s what amuses me: one day rain and cloudy skies, next day snow and sunny environs. But that’s simply how the cookie crumbles, and you just have to learn to take it as it comes, both the good and the bad. That’s why Job didn’t curse God and carry on nasty when the Lord allowed the devil to bring down his earthly fortunes and destroy his family. And though it’s never easy to accept the bad, especially after a season of good, if we sincerely believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, we must also have the faith to understand God’s ways, how He operates in the lives of His people.

And the first step in doing that is accepting this foundational scripture that Bruh Paul wrote to the church at Rome. ‘And we know that all things work together for good to them that LOVE God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.’ (Rom. 8:28) Yes friends, our great God has promised that in the end, He will make all things right for those who put their sincere trust in Him. He doesn’t promise that life will be a constant bed of roses or a Sunday afternoon stroll in the park, but the ending will surely be worthwhile.

And to further strengthen our faith we need to remember these magnificent words of Jeremiah on the Lord’s behalf. ‘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). (Jer. 29:11) Now why would He make such a promise if He didn’t intend to keep it eh? That brings us to another important aspect of our faith; to understand and believe that our God does not lie.

Listen as the Bible informs us: ‘God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? Or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good? Behold I have received commandment to bless: and he hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it.’ (Num. 23:19-20) Oh my people, after LOVE, faithfulness is perhaps God’s greatest attribute! He WILL NEVER renege on a promise! He does exactly what He says! And we need to understand that in spades, if we intend to loyally follow and fellowship with him.

And if you’re still uncertain about following God based on His promises, or you think all we’ve said so far is simply Old Testament stuff, then listen to these marvellous New Testament promises from our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and let your faith soar! First off is this promise of the Holy Spirit. ‘If ye LOVE me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall 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)

Wow mih bredrin! What a marvellous promise! Jesus was going back to heaven but promised His disciples and future followers that He would be with them through the indwelling presence of the third person of the Holy Trinity, the Holy Spirit, which so excitingly happened at the Pentecost celebration some fifty days after Jesus ascended back to heaven. And you can read all about it Acts chapter 2; as His followers sat together, and a sound from heaven broke into the room, like a rushing mighty wind, and cloven (divided) tongues of fire appeared and sat on each of them, and the Holy Spirit filled them all up, and they began speaking in various languages!

Mama Mia! That’s how our Christian church was born! What a marvellous and exciting moment that must have been. But my people, it all hangs on our believing in Christ Jesus and on our growing in faith in Him! And that is brought into question right after He promises the coming of the Comforter, the Holy Ghost, when He declares: (yesss!!!) ‘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)

And all of that follows what He had earlier said to them. ‘Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions (dwellings): if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.’ (John 14:1-3) And that’s why we’re following Hs commandments, growing our faith and ever watching so closely for His return, that we could be with him in heaven or wherever He is forever!

Now there’s one last promise of Jesus that seals the deal. He says: ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) Yes my fellow saints, our Lord and Saviour has overcome the world, defeated Satan and all his iniquity workers, and it’s just a matter of time before they are destroyed forever, while we will enjoy eternal life with the Lord!

And if all that doesn’t lift your faith, then check out what we call our Thursday Blessings, that’s been bestowed on us to do the work God has enlisted us to do down here. And since they must be declared (awright!!!) out loud for them to be activated, let’s do that right now, as one loud and sincere voice.

Altogether: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection!

I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’

Now let us go out and use those blessings wisely and generously as Jesus desires of us. And I do hope that all we’ve spoken of today will encourage us, and bring a refreshing breath of life to our faith! Much LOVE!

…without an abundance of hope, faith and LOVE…there can be no Christian brotherhood…

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ

Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 November 2022 Psalm 103:2.

24 Nov 2022 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a positive outlook on life, acknowledged the sovereignty of God, bless the Lord oh my soul, crowns thee with loving-kindness, curse, dies in the hot sun, divine protection, everything comes from God, executes righteousness, forget not all his benefits, forgives all thine iniquities, free will, from everlasting to everlasting, grows in the dew, heals all thy diseases, LOVE, man's days are as grass, merciful and gracious God, negative word, prosper, redeems thy life from destruction, satisfies thy mouth with good things, slow to anger, succeed, tender mercies, Thanksgiving Day, the flower in the field, the grim reaper, Thursday Blessings, thy youth is renewed like the eagle's

Psalm 103:2. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:

HAPPY THANKSGIVING U.S. OF A !

And a Happy Thanksgiving Day to our friends, families and neighbours in the U.S. of A! Today’s their biggest holiday, with monumental celebrations all over the country. Let’s hope that you all have good weather and abundant joy, with peace and good cheer, and that much thanks is truly given where it belongs, to Almighty God, the Keeper and Provider of all your good things. And on this foggy Thursday morning, as the month of November and the unforgettable year of 2022 draw to a close, I believe it will be extremely wise and beneficial to ALL of us to remember who gives us life, health and wealth; Jehovah God!

And on this Thanksgiving Day, there’s no better scripture for us to delve into and write indelibly in our hearts, bodies and souls than Psalm 103 – Thanksgiving for God’s mercy. So please read with me, these awesome words of Bruh David as he opened his heart to the Lord so long ago. ‘Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with LOVING-kindness and tender mercies; who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.’ (Ps. 103:1-5)

Yes friends, all that we have, all that we are and do, is based on the Lord’s mercy and LOVING-kindness. Everything that we will put into our mouths today, the clothes we wear, the rooves over our heads, and EVERYTHING else in our lives belong to and comes from Almighty God. Unfortunately though, too many of us don’t know and/or appreciate that fact, thus we are not very thankful, and thus our lives are not as joyful and abundant as they could be.

Why do you think there’s so much strife, anger, greed, resentment, hatred, poverty and sickness in our world, despite the highest level of technology, education, medical achievements and other worthwhile inventions we’ve ever attained? Because we have not acknowledged the sovereignty and supremacy of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and shown gratefulness for all He’s done for us poor sinners and frail humans.

Now let’s continue reading those marvellous words of Bruh David from Psalm 103, where he further informs us of God’s goodness and mercy. ‘The Lord executeth righteousness and judgement for all that are oppressed. He made known his way unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel. The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous (abounding) in mercy (LOVING-kindness). He will not always chide (strive): neither will he keep his anger for ever.

He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy (LOVING-kindness) toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame (understands our constitution); he remembereth that we are dust.’ (Ps. 103: 6-14)

Oh my people, if many more of us would only realize that fact; that we are dust, created, molded from the dust of the earth by the hands of God, who then breathed His Spirit of life into us. It means we’re not the strong, solid God-like entity we believe we are but, frail and fragile creations who insist on fooling themselves. Please note we have no control over the length and breadth of our lives. Despite all the earthly wealth and power we possess, they can’t save us when the Grim Reaper comes a calling; one moment we’re here, then the next we’re not. That ought to teach us a very important lesson, but sadly it doesn’t, and we keep on seeking and searching for what we’ll never find, at least without God’s help.

And Bruh David hits the nail on the head when he continues: ‘As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more (shall not remember it). But the mercy (LOVING-kindness) of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children; To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.’ (Ps. 103:14-18)

That says it in spades my brethren! The Lord created us for His pleasure and fellowship, and the rewards to those that remember and do His commandments are exceedingly abundant. He casts away our sins, and even gave the life of His Son, Jesus Christ to pay for them. That shows how much He cares for us. So why are we so reluctant to return that LOVE and reverence eh? Because we are stubborn, foolish and hard-headed!

The li’l free-will He gave us has gone to our heads and made us believe that we’re the greatest thing since sliced bread, when in fact, we’re nothing without Him, like a flower in the field that grows up proud and strong in the early morning dew, but then fades and dies when the hot midday sun hits it. When are we going to learn eh, that most of our troubles stem from resisting the call and the power of Almighty God?

I don’t know, because we’re now bent on removing Him completely from our society, which is a total joke and simply shows how much our brains are addled and the enemy has successfully fooled us. Yes friends, Satan knows that He’s lost the war; in fact he never had a chance from the beginning, but he knows our weakness and keeps pounding away at it. You have to give him and A for perseverance in the face of such total defeat. If only we could be as persevering on the Lord’s behalf.

Anyway, let’s hope that during these Thanksgiving Day celebrations, many of us will take a moment to ponder the true reasons for our thanks and gratitude and wake up to the fact that God is indeed Lord, and the devil is a defeated foe. And to help us do His work down here on earth, the Lord has generously bestowed numerous blessings, which we call our Thursday Blessings. But they have to be declared out loud to activate them. So, let’s do that right now nuh.

And if we truly believe that, then we must now go out and use those blessings to teach others about Christ and help them to come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!

…it’s good to give thanks…but before doing so…one must know…to whom thanks is truly owed…

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ

Today’s Scrip-Bit 17 November 2022 Hebrews 11:6.

17 Nov 2022 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a compassionate heart, a crown of righteousness, a harbinger, bear thee up, by faith, by it the elders obtained a good report, cast thyself down, clear sailing, common sense, courage, creativity, curse, dash thy foot against a stone, endure to the end, faith in a nutshell, faith is the substance of things hoped for, give his angels charge over thee, God is faithful, he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him, he that cometh to God, in their hands, it is written, Jesus will always be with you, LOVE, must believe that he is, negative word, no temptation has overtaken you, prosper, rocket science, succeed, such as is common to man, surrender to God, the evidence of things not seen, the Son of God, thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God, Thursday Blessings, trust, without faith it is impossible to please God

Hebrews 11:6. But without faith it is impossible to please him (God): for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

It’s Thursday, the penultimate day of our work week, and possibly a harbinger of what our weekend will be like; snow filled! (smile) My computer tells me that snow is in the offing. And if that’s so, then the winter weather is here to stay, meaning we had better get used to it as soon as possible, for we might just be in for a long, cold season.

But as the familiar saying goes, ‘Who cares eh?’ Not us believers in Christ Jesus, for once you have Jesus in your life, it will be clear sailing. (smile) Well that’s not totally true, the sailing will not always be clear, but Jesus will ALWAYS be there to guide and protect you and bring you out safely from any tough times. That’s His promise!

Listen to Bruh Paul in his first missive to the church at Corinth. ‘There hath no temptation taken (overtaken) you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.’ (1 Cor. 10:13)

What a marvellous God we serve my people! He will allow temptations to come against us, to test our faith and our backbone, but He will always be there in the wings ready to help us if we falter, either finding a way for us to escape it, or by giving us His divine help to overcome it.

But, as with everything else in the Lord’s kingdom, that requires, belief, faith, trust, surrender and good communication with our God. And also remember what the psalmist said in Psalm 91, subtitled ‘God is a refuge and fortress,’ long before the coming of Jesus.

Read these words of glorious promise with me. ‘Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the Most High, thy habitation (dwelling place); There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in thy ways. They shall bear (lift) thee up in their hands, lest thou dash (strike) thy foot against a stone. Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder (cobra): the young lion and dragon (serpent) shalt thou trample under feet.’ (Ps. 91:9-13)

And if you don’t believe the psalmist, then check out Jesus’ conversation with Satan when He was tempted in the wilderness. That’s the scripture he used to inveigle Jesus to throw himself down from the pinnacle of the temple. ‘And (Satan) saith unto him (Jesus), If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge over thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.’ (Matt. 4:6)

Yes friends, Satan knows scripture, better than us to boot, for remember he was once the archangel Lucifer, and probably even had a hand in helping to write it. And that’s why He knows exactly where to strike to get us to do his evil bidding. But like Jesus we must refute his arguments with scriptural refutations. (smile) What was Jesus’ reply to Satan’s entreaty? ‘Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt (test) the Lord thy God.’ (Matt. 4:7)

Now Jesus refutation comes directly from Deuteronomy 6:16, where Moses lectured the Israelites on the sorrows of disobedience to God’s laws. And I like to add to it, ‘neither shall thou tempt (test) the children of God.’ (smile) Oh my people, living for Jesus in this evil, sin-filled world can be difficult, but if we hold strong to our faith, then He will enable us to come through with shining colours and eventually receive that crown of righteousness that Bruh Paul told Timothy awaits all those who endure to the end with Jesus. (2 Tim. 4:8)

And the author of Hebrews tells us thus about faith. ‘Now faith is the substance (realization) of things hoped for, the evidence (conviction) of things not seen.’ (Heb. 11:1) That simply means we hope for what we don’t see, but by faith, strong trust in God, believe that it will come to pass. And then the author of Hebrews goes on to tell us that it was by faith that the elders received a good report. (Heb. 11:2)

Yes, saints of Christ, it was indeed by faith, strong trust in Jehovah God, that all the forefathers of our faith did what they did, and that set the stage for us. Consequently, the writer of Hebrews can further tell us: ‘But without faith it is impossible to please him (God): for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.’ (Heb. 11:6)

And that my fellow believers is our faith in a nutshell. We must believe that Jehovah God exists, and that He rewards those who diligently seek Him and thus obey His laws. Matter fix! And it’s not rocket science, but simple common sense. Although common sense seems to have gone the way of the dodo bird in these current times. (smile)

Now, here is the continuation of that promise from Psalm 91, which ought to lift up our faith even more this Thursday morning at the beginning of winter. ‘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 time of trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. With long life will I satisfy him, and show him my salvation.’ (Ps. 91:14-16)

Wow mih bredrin! Yuh see what the Lord promises to do for those who believe that He exists and the rewards He will offer to those who faithfully serve and revere Him! And He’s doing it every day of our lives with the blessings, the mercies and the grace He bestows on us that we don’t deserve. And there’s this particular group of blessings that we call our Thursday Blessings, which we need to activate by declaring (awright!!!) them out loud.

So let’s do that right now nuh. As one strong and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!

And having activated those blessings, it’s now our bounden duty to go out and use them for the betterment of our world and to bring others to Christ! Much LOVE!

…life is all about Almighty God…belief in…hope…faith…trust and total surrender to Him…

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ

Today’s Scrip-Bit 10 November 2022 Proverbs 21:13.

10 Nov 2022 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a compassionate heart, a modicum of circumspection, a positive outlook on life, abundance, be kindly affectioned one to another, be not overcome of evil, bring others to Christ, brotherly LOVE, creativity, cry himself but not be heard, curse, do unto others as you want them to do to you, fervent in spirit, forgive every one their trespasses, have life more abundantly, he that loveth pleasure shall be a poor man, he that loveth wine and oil shall not be rich, in honour preferring one another, life is like a boomerang, love not sleep lest thou come to poverty, LOVE Revolution, negative word, not slothful in business, open thine eyes, overcome evil with good, recompense to no man evil for evil, self-control, serving the Lord, talent, Thanks be to God, the Big Library, the cry of the poor, the motto of heaven, thou shalt be satisfied with bread, Thursday Blessings, we reap what we sow, whoso stoppeth his ears

Proverbs 21:13. Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard.

And then it was Thursday! Another glorious day in the life! Thanks be to God! Ah friends, I wonder if most of us realize how blessed and privileged we are to be seeing another day on God’s great earth eh? Yes, we certainly are, since many others did not get that same blessed privilege and we can read their names in the obits. And I’m sure that many of them expected and wanted to awaken this bright sunshiny autumn morn, but unfortunately didn’t. That’s why it’s ever so important to enjoy each and every day that we see the light of God shining through the darkness.

Now I’m chuckling here as I just opened the Big Library, for the Bible is not simply a Book, but a Library with numerous Books in it. So, I just opened the Library and it opened unto a very interesting and most appropriate word of advice from Cousin Sol. He wisely advises: ‘LOVE not sleep, lest thou come to poverty; open thine eyes, and thou shalt be satisfied with bread.’ (Prov. 20:13) And is that ever the gospel truth my people! However you want to take it, literally or metaphorically, too much sleep will eventually bring us despair. But if we get up and get, follow the Lord’s will for our lives, then we will be blessed with untold prosperity.

Remember Jesus said that He came to die for us that we could have life, and have it so abundantly till it overflows. Well, we can’t get that abundant life by just sitting on our fannies, enjoying our past laurels, expecting it to just happen on its own. No, we have to do something useful in Jesus’ name to get that abundant life.

And Bruh Paul corroborates Cousin Sol’s words when he tells the Romans: ‘Be kindly affectioned (affectionate) one to another with brotherly LOVE; in honour preferring (giving preference to) one another. Not slothful in business (lagging in diligence); fervent (boiling over) in spirit, serving the Lord.’ (Rom. 12:10-11) Yes friends, that’s the kind of attitude and behaviour we ought to display if we’re true believers in Christ Jesus!

And by the way, here’s another wonderful tidbit from Cousin Sol. ‘He that LOVETH pleasure shall be a poor man: he that LOVETH wine and oil shall not be rich.’ (Prov. 21:17) So that’s another no-no in the search for the abundant life. Nothing’s wrong with pleasure, wine and oil in moderation, for they are all a reward for our labour, but to focus steadfastly and only on them is a definite disaster waiting to happen. And we all know people, even believers who have fallen into that trap of the devil and are shaking it rather rough.

Now, the sad and unfortunate thing about our failures and mistakes is that they don’t affect just us, the individual, but it flows right through our families, friends, and associates. They all are affected in some manner by our wrong choices and unwise behaviour. That means it’s ever so important that we be very careful about our lifestyles, and live them as Jeeves was won’t to say, ‘with a modicum of circumspection.’ (smile) And that brings us to this next tidbit I just espied in Cousin Sol’s works. (smile) He says: ‘Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard.’ (Prov. 21:13)

Oh my people, that’s the motto of heaven itself! In other words, we reap what we sow! And Jesus said it this way: ‘Judge (condemn) not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgement (condemnation) ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete (use), it shall be measured to you again.’ (Matt. 7:1-2) Yes friends, life is like a boomerang; whatever you send out, good or bad, it comes rocketing back to you eventually.

But, unfortunately, many of us don’t take that basic concept into consideration when we look for revenge or try to do wrong to someone else. That’s why Bruh Paul said to the church at Rome. ‘Recompense (repay) to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men (have regard for good things)…Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.’ (Rom. 12:17, 21)

Now my brethren, if we are as wise as we ought to be (smile) that should touch our very hearts and souls and wake us up to the reality of the evil and wrongdoing that’s so pervasive in many of our lives and the world in general. Remember the portrait Jesus painted in Matthew 18 when He spoke of forgiveness, with the servant who owed his master a lot of money but could not repay it, so he begged the master for mercy and the master granted him a complete withdrawal of all debt.

However, the same servant who was shown such incredible mercy responded by locking up a fellow servant who owed him a pittance. His fellow servants brought the matter to his master’s attention. And the master wailed on the unforgiving servant: ‘O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst (begged) me. Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellow servant, even as I had on thee? And his lord was wroth (angry), and delivered him to the tormentors (torturers), till he should pay all that was due unto him. So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.’ (Matt. 18:32-35)

Unfortunately though, forgiveness is not a big thing in our world these days, but the truth of the Golden Rule has always been with us, and will always be. Listen to how Jesus says it nuh. ‘Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.’ (Matt. 7:12) And oh, if we would only live by that rule even a li’l more than we’re currently doing, our world would be such a wonderful place!

Anyway, it’s Thursday and the Lord has given us tools to try and bring those wise and godly attributes to our fellow man, tools we call our Thursday Blessings. However, they have to be declared (steups!!!) out loud for them to be activated. So, let’s do that right now nuh, in strong and sincere voice. ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance!

Now, let’s go out and use those tools to bring others to Christ, or at least to teach them to forgive and do unto others as they wish others to do unto them! That’s the least we can do. Much LOVE!

…why do we always seek forgiveness and goodness…but are so reluctant to grant them…

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ

Today’s Scrip-Bit 3 November 2022 John 1:14.

03 Nov 2022 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a compassionate heart, Alpha and Omega, as for me and my house, Big Brother, curse, fog, free will, full of grace and truth, he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God, high priest, his commandments are not grievous, in him was life, In the beginning was the Word, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, negative word, prince of peace, self-control, the beginning and the end, the darkness comprehended it not, the life was the light of men, the light shineth in the darkness, the only begotten of the Father, the Word was God, the Word was with God, this is the love of God, Thursday Blessings, we beheld his glory, we will serve the Lord, whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world

John 1:14. The Word was made (became) flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Oh boy, it was a foggy, foggy night, with no moon or stars in sight. And it’s also a foggy, foggy Thursday morning with no glimpse of the sun. The fog began in the early evening and has been going on since then. Every time I looked out the window during the night, all I could see was this white mist swirling around, making the place look ghost-like. (smile) And when I got up this morning and looked out, I saw the same white, misty sight. Brother! It’s been a long time since I’ve seen fog lasting for such a long period of time. Let’s hope and pray that it doesn’t cause too many problems out there on the roads this morning as commuters endeavour to get to work safely.

Oh, I know the fog can seem harmless, but believe me, it isn’t, especially when it changes its intensity without any notice, causing your sight lines to deteriorate without any notice either. Bad fog causes more accidents than snow, for with the snow, you can at least see where you’re going, while with the fog, you can’t. And like my computer was telling me the truth yesterday when it kept on forecasting fog. (smile) It’s also forecasting the same weather pattern right now too. So who knows what the weather will bring?

No one but Jesus! Glory be my people! We have a Lord and Saviour, a High Priest, a King of Kings, the Word, who knows it all; from the beginning to the end. For He was there in the beginning, as John so eloquently puts it in his gospel. ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him: and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in the darkness; and the darkness comprehended (apprehended) it not.’ (John 1:1-5)

Yes my fellow beleivers, that’s all about our friend, and brother Jesus Christ. The world was created by the Word of God. He said: ‘Let there be light: and there was light.’ (Gen. 1:3) And everything else He spoke into existence, except mankind, whom He made with His hands from the dirt of the ground, then breathed His breath of life into man’s lifeless body, thereby making it a living being. That’s why the Lord LOVES us so much! We are the work of His hands! And Jesus was right there all the time with the Father as He created the universe. One unified Godhead of Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

Remember, ‘the Word was with God, and the Word was God…’ But then ‘The Word was made (became) flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.’ (John 1:14) Now which Divine Being became flesh eh? Only Jesus Christ, who came to us in all His glory as the only begotten Son of God, the perfect image of His Father, filled with all grace and truth!

Wow! What a magnificent Being is our Jesus! Only God, or the Son of God could be so many things to us: Lord and Saviour, King, Advocate, High Priest, Friend, Big Brother, Comforter, Prince of Peace, Counsellor, Judge and Jury, etc. etc! And that’s why it’s ever so important that we strive to live for Him, to be obedient to Him as the Word; the Creator of all things, as well as His word, the rules and regulations He’s laid down for us to live by.

And Remember what Jesus said in His Great Invitation: ‘For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt. 11:30) That means living by His rules and regulations is not difficult. And John in his first epistle tells us the same thing. ‘For this is the LOVE of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous (burdensome, hard to follow). (1 John 5:3) And John should know, because he followed Jesus around for the three years He did His earthly ministry.

However, the problem is that what Jesus directs and what the world says are often two entirely different things. But then again, John explains it so wonderfully in his first epistle. ‘For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God.’ (1 John 5:4-5) Oh my fellow saints, every believer, everyone that’s born again of water and the blood of Christ has power to overcome the sinful practices of this evil world.

As the scholars tell us: ‘There is conquering power through this confession (of faith in Christ) because God is sovereign over the world, and only through the Son does man have access to and find favour with God.’ It couldn’t be spelled out any simpler or clearer than that my faithful brethren. Only through Christ Jesus can we get to the Father. And Jesus Himself made that quite clear when He declared: (oh no!!!) ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.’ (John 14:6)

And it all comes down to choice, our choice, for the Lord gave us free will to choose whom we will follow, His Son Jesus Christ, or the enemy, Satan, prince of darkness and evil. You, personally have to decide whom you will follow, but as Joshua so nicely put it to the people of Israel in his closing address; ‘but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.’ (Josh. 24:15d) That’s also my testimony friends.

And the wonderful thing about our God is that when we decide to follow Him, He bestows blessings on us that we do not deserve but need to do His will. We call them our Thursday Blessings. But they need to be declared (yesss!!!) out loud before they can be activated. So let’s do that right now nuh. As one strong and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance!

And if we truly mean it, then let’s go out and use those blessings to help others come to Christ. Much LOVE!

…Jesus was there at the beginning…and will be there at the end…note His words to John…I am the Alpha and Omega…the beginning and the end… (Rev. 21:6b)

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ

Today’s Scrip-Bit 27 October 2022 James 5:13.

27 Oct 2022 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a compassionate heart, ask and it shall be given to you, confess your faults one to another, consume it upon your lusts, courage, creativity, curse, divine blessings, forgivenss, grace, if he have committed sins they shall be forgiven, is any among you afflicted let him pray, is any merry let him sing psalms, Jehovah Rapha, LOVE, mercy, negative word, pray one for another, propser, seek and you shall find, succeed, the effectual prayer of a righteous man availeth much, the God who heals, the prayer of faith, the wages of sin is death, Thursday Blessings, time to revert to godliness, ye ask and receive not because ye ask amiss

James 5:13. Is any among you afflicted (suffering)? let him pray. Is any merry (cheerful)? let him sing psalms.

Well my Scrip-Bit friends and family, what’s up with you this Thursday autumn morn eh? I sincerely hope that my missive finds you all in good health, and if not, that you are getting good medical help as well as prayer from your fellow believers. For, as James, Jesus’ brother, writes in the Good Book: ‘Is any among you afflicted (suffering)? let him pray. Is any merry (cheerful)? let him sing psalms. Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.

And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual (effective) fervent prayer (supplication) of a righteous man availeth much.’ (James 5:13-16) And all of that to say, that prayer is also extremely important in the life of a believer when he or she is sick. We all run to the medical people, or the medicine cabinet as soon as we feel somewhat off kilter, but friends, the first place to run is always to Jehovah Rapha, the God who heals.

Now, He might send us to the medicine cabinet or the doctor, but it is ever so important to get Him involved in whatever sickness we are experiencing. For though we have come a long way in terms of medical technology, there are many times when man and man-made medicine can’t cure our illnesses, but Almighty God certainly can, if He so desires. It’s happening all the time around our world, where doctors sign off on patients, claiming they can’t do any more for them, but eventually through faith and prayer they get healed.

So, it’s not like it doesn’t or can’t happen. Much of the time it’s because we don’t try, that’s ask for divine healing, or we don’t believe that we will get it. Remember Jesus’ admonition. ‘Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.’ (Matt. 7:7) And James corroborates his brother’s words by stating: ‘…ye have not because ye ask not.’ (James 4:2) And even when we ask: ‘Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts (pleasures) . (James 4:3) So my people, persistent asking, seeking and knocking isn’t always successful unless our motives are right, because God looks at our hearts before He contemplates our pleas.

Anyway, getting back to our subject of healing through prayer. Here’s what the scholars say on those verses above: ‘One of the Old Testament names of God is Yahweh-Rapha, meaning “The Lord That Heals You” (Ex. 15:26). Illustration: The healing power of God is evidenced in a number of instances in Scripture. God heals by preserving health (Deut. 8:4), and advising good nutritional habits (Ex. 15:26; Lev. 11) and a healthful life-style (Lev. 12-14) and through the application of medical treatment (James 5:14), forgiveness of disease-causing sin (Num. 12:13), and the prayer of faith (James 5:15).

Application: Although God does not always choose to heal, He sometimes does. When a Christian is sick, he should confess his known sins, and God may heal him if the sickness is caused by sin. He may also be led to ask his elders to anoint him with oil and pray for his healing. Some diseases experienced by Christians today could be prevented by trusting God as Yahweh-Rapha, and allowing Him to deal with those things in their lives causing stress, anger, and worry. (First Ref. Ex. 15:26; Primary Ref. James 5:14-16; cf. Matt. 19:14)’

Now, that should certainly give us much food for thought, especially with the way sickness is still paralyzing our world despite our high level of medical technology. And I think it’s imperative to quote this very meaningful verse of scripture that the scholars referenced above. It comes after Moses made bitter water sweet for the Israelites at Marah after all their complaining. He said to them: ‘If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth thee.’ (Ex. 15:26)

Now, that should give us even more food for thought. Remember all the plagues that the Lord sent down on Egypt because Pharaoh refused to set the Israelites free? Like the plague of blood, where all the water in Egypt was turned to blood, the plagues of frogs, of lice, of boils, of darkness, the death of the first born of every Egyptian family, which led to the Jewish Passover, still celebrated to this day, because Jehovah Rapha saved the sons of the Israelites by getting them to put the blood of an unblemished lamb on the lintels of their doors, and the angel of death ‘passed over’ those doors that had blood on them.

Consequently, for argument’s sake my brethren, let’s look at the kind of life we are currently living; sinful, disobedient, idol worshipping, denying the authority, even the existence of Almighty God, then put that in context with what Moses said to the Israelites. Isn’t it highly likely, very logical, that a lot of our problems stem from our sinful, disobedient, ungodly behaviour? It surely is! But the only way to find out is if we turned back to Jehovah God, He of many, many wonderful attributes, especially those of grace, mercy and forgiveness. It’s high time we revert to godliness, because our current behaviour is getting us nowhere, but destruction.

And I believe this verse of scripture should also be very instructive in our thoughts and ponderings. It comes after Cousin Sol built the first temple in Jerusalem dedicated to the God of his forefathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The Lord said unto Cousin Sol in a night vision: ‘If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.’ (2 Chr. 7:14)

There again my fellow believers, it’s clearly spelled out that God requires righteous and goldy behaviour from us, strong and true belief in Him and His glorious power, constant communication with Him, and obedience to His will and Word. And any society that’s lacking in those requirements will never truly prosper. We can deny it all we want in this new age of supposed human renaissance, but the truth still remains that if we don’t serve our Creator, Almighty God, the way He desires, we won’t have a joyful or prosperous society.

And what’s so sad is that despite trying all our man-made solutions, which any fool can see aren’t working, we still refuse to try a return to God’s fold. But as they say, we reap what we sow. And that’s the gospel truth, as we are indeed reaping the strife, sickness, and economic problems of our ungodly behaviour. But for those of us who are still hanging in there, trying to fight the good fight, the Lord has bestowed many undeserved blessings on us, what we call our Thursday Blessings, tools to help us do His earthly work. However, they need to be declared so that they can be activated.

So as one strong and sincere voice, let’s declare them right now. ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’

Now, it’s time for us to go out and use those divine blessings to bring others to Christ. Much LOVE!

…the wages of sin is death…so why the surprise at the dying of our sinful society…

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ

Today’s Scrip-Bit 20 October 2022 Isaiah 55:6.

20 Oct 2022 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: all tongues confess, an everlasting covenant, both thou and thy seed shall live, buy wine and milk without money, choose life, comapssionate heart, come unto me all ye that labour, come ye buy and eat, come ye to the waters, curse, every one that thirsteth, God commendeth his own love toward us, God's free gift of salvation, great invitation, I am meek and lowly in heart, I have set before you life and death, I will give you rest, King of Kings, let your soul delight itself in fatness, Lord of Lords, my yoke is easy and my burden light, negative word, prince of peace, seek ye the Lord while he may be found, self-control, self-discipline, storms of life, take my yoke upon you, that Jesus Christ is Lord, the deceiver of God's people, the name above every other name, the wages of sin is death, this is the day the Lord has made, Thursday Blessings, to the glory of God the Father, to whom all knees must bow, we will rejoice and be glad in it, while we were yet sinners christ died for us, you reap what you sow

Isaiah 55:6. Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near.

And the week’s moving along as programmed. Thursday has opened cloudy and windy in my neck of the woods, but it’s still a wonderful day to be alive! It just means being prepared for the weather when we go out; dress for it and be careful walking or driving. However, for true believers in Jesus Christ, every day we open our eyes is a marvellous day, despite the weather, and one we should all greet by declaring (yesss!!!) these awesome words of the psalmist. ‘This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.’ (Ps. 118:24)

Yes friends, we ought to be grateful for each day we awaken and don’t see our names listed in the obits, (smile) even when the mighty storms of life, both literally and figuratively are pounding upon us, and we don’t know what to do. But that’s okay too, because we know someone who knows what to do, how to handle both the literal and figurative storms, His name is Jesus Christ; the Saviour of this sinful world, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the Prince of Peace, the High Priest in the heavens, the Mighty Advocate for those who believe in Him and sincerely surrender their souls to Him; the name that’s above every other name, the one to whom ALL knees must bow and confess that he is Lord to the glory of God the Father!

Wow! What a powerful and influential person to know! And unlike most powerful and influential persons down here on earth, Jesus Christ doesn’t play favourites, or turn away anybody who desires to come to Him, regardless of their troubles, physical or spiritual status. In fact, He welcomes ALL and sundry through His Great Invitation. But before we get to that new invitation (smile) listen to this other Great Invitation that our Lord God Jehovah offered His people Israel through the prophet Isaiah, long before Jesus offered His.

Isaiah gracefully declared (awright!!!) on the Lord’s behalf: ‘Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? Hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness (abundance). Incline your ear and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David… Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near.’ (Is. 55:1-3, 6)

Oh my people, yuh see how our great God was generous from the outset? As the scholars tell us, ‘God’s free gift of salvation is offered to ALL who will receive it. Those who are hungry and thirsty may come and drink without money (freely). He promises an everlasting covenant to the Gentiles (vs. 5) like the one He established with Israel. His invitation to ALL men is clearly stated by the appeal, Seek ye the Lord and call ye upon him.’

Yes my fellow believers, from the very beginning God has been pleading with us to come to Him for succour and nourishment for our souls. But sadly, we have been forestalling Him with excuses, lies and deceptions cast upon us by our enemy Satan, the devourer and deceiver of God’s people. However, as we can see God didn’t give up on us – He NEVER does – and with a heart full of LOVE, sent His Son Jesus Christ to earth to save us, by paying for our sins with His sinless blood that was shed on the cross of Calvary.

So I don’t know how we can ever say that God doesn’t care for us. And Bruh Paul declares it (yesss!!!) thus in his missive to the church at Rome. ‘But God commendeth (demonstrates) his (own) LOVE toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.’ (Rom. 5:8) Please note my people, that the Lord didn’t wait for us to change our evil ways and come to Him, He came to us first, with salvation, through His glorious Son Jesus Christ.

And Jesus, in His turn, also offered us another Great Invitation, where He pleads with mankind: ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (from) me; for I am meek and lowly in heart (gentle and humble): and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt. 11:28-30) I don’t know how else Jesus could plead with us to come to Him nuh. And He did it all through His earthly ministry, but stubborn, unwise, mankind still refuses to believe Him and seek His comfort, peace and salvation that can be found in no one else in God’s great world.

But that li’l matter of free will keeps cropping up and we keep using it to fulfill our own selfish desires for the things of the world, leaving our souls totally open to be ravaged, plundered and then cast off into the fires of hell by the enemy. That’s certainly not wisdom, especially in a time like this when the whole world is in a negative uproar, one filled with strife, poverty, sickness, natural disasters and inequality of enormous proportions.

Oh, but we have free will, so we can do what we want. And what we want right now is to drive God out of our society. Hn! What a laugh! We are even more foolish than we seem, if we believe that God will ever allow Himself to be driven out of His own creation! But as Moses told the children of Israel a long time ago ‘I call heaven and earth to record (as witnesses) this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.’ (Deut. 30:19)

And just for your information my brethren, that declaration (oh yeah!!!) still stands to this day. So it’s up to you to choose spiritual life or death with your free will. But for those of us who have chosen life, the Lord has bestowed upon us a number of tools to do His awesome work. We call them our Thursday Blessings. So let’s declare them (wow! – that’s 5 times straight) so that they can be activated in our lives.

As one strong and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’

And now it’s our bounden duty to go out and put those tools to work in Christ’s name. Much LOVE!

…you reap what you sow…you can’t sow sin and expect to reap eternal life…for the wages of sin is death…

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ

Today’s Scrip-Bit 13 October 2022 Deuteronomy 8:18a.

13 Oct 2022 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a compassionate heart, a positive outlook on life, a time to return to God, another chance, arrogant and self-centred, chosen to get rid of God, curse, descent into the depths of destruction, drought and famine, either feast or famine, eschew the grace of God, God is the backbone of any strong society, good health, he hath founded it upon the seas, if thou do at all forget the Lord thy God, it is he that giveth thee the power to get wealth, LOVE, make the most of the day, negative word, prosper, remember the Lord thy god, succeed, the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, Thursday Blessings, too big for their britches, ye shall surely perish, ye would not be obedient unto the voice of the Lord your God, you reap what you sow

Deuteronomy 8:18a. But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth…

Awright, so it’s a wet and cloudy Thursday autumn morn. But we are still thankful for it, because it means the Lord still believes we are doing good work for Him down here, or, on the flip side of the coin, we’re not doing enough and is therefore giving us another chance to do better. (smile) But whatever the reason, it behooves us to make the most of the day, because who knows if we’ll see tomorrow, or another today.

And yuh better believe we are indeed grateful for the little rain that fell overnight, because we haven’t seen any heavenly blessings around here for some time. And it’s not like it was big showers, but merely protracted drizzles. However, a little is better than none at all. It also reminds us of the serious drought and famine that so many parts of our world are currently suffering. As they say, it’s either feast or famine; some are having no rain, while others are being deluged with water from heaven causing floods and so much calamity where life is already very difficult.

It’s a time for serious prayer my people. A time to return to the God of our forefathers in true repentance because He is the ONLY ONE who can make things right. And we’ve become so arrogant and self-centred with all our technological inventions and immense knowledge that we foolishly believe that we can solve any problems we come across, and thus have chosen to get rid of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob from our society. What foolishness! For He is the backbone, the foundation of any strong and prosperous society.

Yuh know, we say that History is a record of the past that helps us to understand the present, but again, arrogantly we have dismissed true history from our minds, even to the point of rewriting it to fall in line with what we are currently promoting. But please note, that regardless of what we call history, the truth of it will always come out. And that truth is simply that any nation or society that eschews the grace and mercy of Jehovah God, eventually suffers and dies.

And that we can see from the true history of our world. It’s littered with so many originally God-fearing nations, who got prosperous with God’s help, then after a season of prosperity, like we are currently doing, turned away from Him, foolishly deciding that we could handle it on our own. When will we ever learn eh my brethren? We just have to look at the Jewish people, God’s own people, to understand His immense and oh so important role in our lives.

So, let’s see if we can use a li’l logic and reasoning here to support our position. (smile) Now, Bruh David, one of the foremost Jews of all time, wrote these marvellous words in Psalm 24, subtitled, ‘The king of glory.’ Please read them with me. ‘The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof; the world and all that dwell therein. For he hath founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the floods (rivers).’ (Ps. 24:1-2) Now that tells us that the Lord God Jehovah created the world and all therein.

And then in their Holy Book, the Torah, which outlines Jewish history, their leader, Moses unequivocally states. ‘But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish (confirm) his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day. And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the Lord thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish. As the nations which the Lord destroyeth before your face, so shall ye perish; because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of the Lord your God.’ (Deut. 8:18-20)

Yes friends, that’s very clear and concise. As the scholars say: ‘Yahweh alone gave Israel the ability to get wealth, and the blessing the nation enjoyed was the result of His covenant with the people and was the outcome of His promise to their forefathers.’ And in the history of Israel, we so often see that whenever they prospered, God was at the forefront of their nation.

But unfortunately, the same thing happened to them that’s happening to us right now; whenever they got prosperous, they felt they no longer needed God and turned away to their own devices. And every time they did that, got too big for their britches, the nation went into a tailspin was besieged, conquered or taken into captivity. However, when they woke up, came back to their senses, repented and returned to God’s fold, He forgave them and allowed them to prosper again.

Now doesn’t that touch a sensible and sensitive chord in our hearts and minds, at least intimating that the Lord God Jehovah has a hand in our destiny, and turning against Him might well spell our demise? And even if you are not convinced by that argument, (smile) then try this one on for size nuh. Since we believe that we are so great and powerful in our own strength, why then is our world in such a sorry state of strife, sickness and poverty eh? We’ve tried every solution, every system known to man to right our world, but nothing seems to work.

Sorry, there’s one solution we haven’t yet tried, that’s turning repentantly and sincerely back to Almighty God! Now, if nothing else seems to be working, doesn’t it make sense to at least try that? It surely does. And we have nothing to lose, for our own efforts are continually driving us down into the mire of destruction. But with Almighty God at our helm once again, we possibly have a whole lot to gain. So what’s it to be eh my people? Continual descent into the depths of destruction, or an awakening, a renewal of mankind under the mighty, merciful, gracious and forgiving hand of Jehovah God, our Creator and Provider; the one who gives us the ability to prosper in His world?

The answer is entirely up to us, as individuals and as members of the church of Christ. Now, I’m not saying that the stunning calamity in our world right now is the work of God’s hands, but He surely isn’t preventing it from happening. And that ought to tell us something; He’s trying to convey a serious message to us, namely He doesn’t like our current behaviour and desires us to repent and return to His fold. So friends, since we are supposed to be God’s wisest creation, let’s wake up and admit the error of our ways nuh. The Israelites were mighty stupid at times, but when calamity struck them, they were wise enough to turn back to the God of their fathers, who forgave them and renewed their prosperity. Why can’t be as wise eh?

And for those of us who are willing to work for God, He has generously endowed us with a marvellous set of tools to do it. We call them our Thursday Blessings. So, let’s declare and thus activate them right now nuh. As one strong and sincere voice. ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline!

I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’

Now, if we are to reap any positive benefits, let’s go out and sow good seeds in the name of Jesus Christ nuh! Much LOVE!

…you only reap what you sow…sowing sin and disobedience reaps destruction…sowing obedience and righteousness reaps eternal life…

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ

SCRIP-BITS

Today’s Scrip-Bit 15 December 2022 Psalm 118:8.

Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 December 2022 Luke 1:38.

Today’s Scrip-Bit 1 December 2022 John 14:15.

Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 November 2022 Psalm 103:2.

Today’s Scrip-Bit 17 November 2022 Hebrews 11:6.

Today’s Scrip-Bit 10 November 2022 Proverbs 21:13.

Today’s Scrip-Bit 3 November 2022 John 1:14.

Today’s Scrip-Bit 27 October 2022 James 5:13.

Today’s Scrip-Bit 20 October 2022 Isaiah 55:6.

Today’s Scrip-Bit 13 October 2022 Deuteronomy 8:18a.

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