Today’s Scrip-Bit 2 October 2020 Psalm 49:20.

02 Oct 2020 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 49:20.     ​Man that is in honour, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.

And yes, at long last is Friday; the day that ends our work week! So we’re joyful and happy and ready to behave like leggo-beasts! But please remember we still can’t go bar hopping and gallivanting on a Friday evening after work like we used to! Forget about the happy hour an’ them and just go straight home and be safe. That’s my li’l chat for today! (smile) 

Now let’s see what the ordinary workingman has to say on this first Friday in chilly, leaf turning colour and falling October. ‘Yeah! TGIF! Thank God is Friday and another weekend is here to rest mih tired and somewhat bored bones. Yes, staying home so all the time, especially since the Covid-19 numbers going up again in my li’l corner of the world, is getting somewhat tiresome. Ah not a big go-outer, but when I want to go out, I want to be able to go without having to put on mask and look all around me, and stay away from people, to make sure I don’t catch anything to bring back to mih family. 

And the people an’ them, especially the younger ones, just won’t learn to physically distance and wear deh mask and wash deh hands and be careful. No, they want to party… and the sad thing is that they can’t party nuh, they don’t really know how to have a good time. For them that is drinking and falling down stupid and not knowing what happening. Steups! 

An’ by the way, yuh see who finally catch the Covid business? The one and only Donald Trump, the august President of the United States, dictator in waiting; a man who been denigrating the virus since it begin, and saying is just stupidness and it soon pass and yuh doh need no mask when it causing so much unnecessary deaths in the U.S. 

Well the same way the Lord does move in mysterious ways and is no respecter of people, is the same way Covid does move, so now it finally prove to him the foolishness of his ways…at least ah hope so. But Trump is such an ignorant, arrogant, greedy, hungry for dictatorship power, know it all, that one never know with him nuh. 

And ah hope the people living under him finally wake up and see him for what he really is; a blooming … put in yuh own description. (smile) But as for me and my house, we going to try and stay safe and keep thanking the Lord for Fridays and the weekends yes!’ 

Ah mih people, the ordinary workingman is sure worked up today. And so he should be when people not behaving how they should and just spreading the blooming virus willy nilly! All over the world the Covid numbers climbing again, mostly because people stop paying attention to the safety procedures. So what we expect eh, when those are the only things we have to slow down the spread of the virus? Until we get a good vaccine – and people take it – masks and hand washing and physical distancing are the only useful things we have. 

But what does the ole fella know eh? He ain’t no scientist. But hear these magnificent and oh so true words from the Good Book nuh, taken from Psalm 49 – Trust in God, not in wealth – by the sons of Korah. ‘Man that is in honour, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.’ (Ps. 49:20) 

Yeh friends, we are supposed to be a little lower than the angels, but higher than the beasts, have dominion over them, but when we don’t pay serious attention to God’s Word, then we become just like the beasts. And hear how Cousin Sol puts it in Ecclesiastes, where he’s writing as the Preacher. ‘For that which befalleth (happens to) the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no pre-eminence (advantage) above a beast: for all is vanity (futility).’ (Eccl. 3:19) 

Yes, it would seem that man and beasts share the same common fate, but later on though, in 12:7, Cousin Sol does affirm that man’s spirt returns to God after death. ‘Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.’ (Eccl. 12:7) So friends, in that most important fact, we are not like the beasts, because our spirits return to God for judgement after death. But when we behave foolishly and ignore God and His Word and Will, then we truly behave like beasts. And unfortunately, in these most disturbing and dangerous times, when we should all have our wits about us, too many of us are behaving like the beasts! 

But thankfully, with our great and wonderful God, all things are possible, and He offers forgiveness and mercy without restraint, to all those who call upon Him in sincerity. So let’s do that now nuh, through our Friday Chant, let’s call on Him for divine help. All together now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. Yuh know it’s been rough… what with all the anxiety, the confusion and havoc that the Covid-19 virus and the racial strife causing. We not accustomed to that kind of life Lord, and it really telling on us. And we know we can’t handle it on our own, that we desperately need your help.

 Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat both the virus and the unrest in our streets. So Lord, we sincerely ask you today to give the governments and those involved in the forefront of this serious and unexpected storm, the sure and wise guidance to handle the situation properly, with the least amount of loss to life and property as possible. And please help those of us who must go out to work amidst all the confusion, to be responsible and to stay safe, so that we can avoid any more serious setbacks. 

And Lord, we fervently pray that You’ll use this situation to also bring a lot of backsliders back to your fold, show them the error of their ways. It’s also a good opportunity to introduce a whole new flock, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion because of the way we, your faithful believers, handle the situation. Yes Lord, please use this pandemic and the unrest in the streets as a means of restoring faith in You, so that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’ 

So the corollary to all that now is for us to go out and behave like faithful and trusting believers – like we claim above – and handle the situation the way the Lord desires us to handle it! Much LOVE!

…it’s time for Christians…to stand up strong…and make a real and sincere difference… 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 25 September 2020 1 Corinthians 3:18.

25 Sep 2020 Leave a comment

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

1 Corinthians 3:18.     Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world (age), let him become a fool, that he may be wise.

Well can you believe it’s Friday! I can’t. As usual, the whole week has passed by and I haven’t done any of the things I claim I want to do. But what to do eh? (smile) I’m not going to berate myself unnecessarily, or feel terribly guilty – there will be a touch of guilt though – (smile) for in these unprecedented times, who knows what unprecedented and abnormal things will happen in our lives. The important thing is to stay connected with God, and to grow in wisdom and knowledge and obedience to His will and holy word and encouraging others as best we can. 

If we’re doing that, then I believe we’re fulfilling our purpose for this time when we can’t, or are not supposed to go out and about like we are, or rather were used to doing. And now that I’ve had my say, (smile) let’s hear what the ordinary workingman has to share this Friday morning in the last week of September of this crazy and mind-boggling year of 2020. 

As usual, he opens with an enthusiastic: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday…and the weekend is here at last! Wow! It’s been a good week, nice warm September weather, with temps even in the mid 20’s. But it’s coming…yes people, winter is coming. The trees already bearing out that indisputable and unchangeable fact; they starting to turn colour. And are they beautiful colours; gold, brown, yellow, red… fall is the best, or rather most colourful season of the year. Like the Lord made it beautiful because He knew that winter was coming when everything would be cold as ice and look dead and dreary, so He wanted to give us something to perk us up before that happen. 

But that lead me to wonder what going to happen with this Covid-19 business, if it going to get worse with the cold weather and flu season? And the numbers now going back up again because people not observing the safety precautions. Steups! Like is only when we catch it, we going to learn. Yuh see the virus is no respecter of people, even the leader of the Federal opposition and his wife have it, as well as the leader of the French party. So what it going to take eh? Another lockdown. They done restrict gatherings in Toronto and Peel and Ottawa… Ah Lord eh! Thank God that me an’ mine doing we best to stay safe yes!’ 

Yes my people, that’s why I have serious concerns about the belief that mankind is the wisest animal on the planet. (smile) He certainly doesn’t show that in his everyday actions. That brings me to this interesting, and I believe appropriate bit of scripture from Bruh Paul’s first missive to the church at Corinth, when they were debating and divided over whom to follow, Bruh Paul or Apollos. ‘Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world (age), let him become a fool, that he may be wise.’ (1 Cor. 3:18) 

That’s good advice, for as Cousin Sol adds in his two cents worth: ‘Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear (reverence) the Lord, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel (body), and marrow (strength) to thy bones.’ (Prov. 3:7-8) And that’s the gospel truth friends! And if you’re wondering why, then listen to Bruh Paul’s explanation. ‘For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. for it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness. And again, The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain (futile).’ (1 Cor.3:19-20) And there Bruh Paul is quoting Job and the psalmist. 

Job says of the Lord. ‘To set up on high those that be low; that those which mourn may be exalted to safety. He disappointeth (frustrates) the desires of the crafty, so that their hands cannot perform their enterprises (plans). He taketh the wise in their own craftiness: and the counsel of the froward (of the wily) is carried headlong (comes quickly on themselves).’ (Job 5:11-13) And the writer of psalm 94 admitted: ‘The Lord knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are vanity (futile).’ (Ps.94:11) So it wasn’t anything new that Bruh Paul was preaching. 

And he concludes: ‘Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are yours; whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours. And ye are Christ’s: and Christ is God’s.’ (1 Cor. 3:21-23) Immortal words of wisdom and truth friends! 

As the scholars explain: ‘3:21-22. For all things are yours: The one who belongs to Christ is a child of God, and his Father will do anything for him. The absurdity of their division over allegiances to any of these men is that God gave them “all” to the Corinthians.’ The same goes for us today; whoever is teaching us, they were ALL given to us by God, for His glory, not for us to be foolishly attached to them. 

Now let’s go home chanting our Friday Chant, asking God for His divine help in these turbulent times. With all sincerity now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. Yuh know it’s been rough… what with all the anxiety, the confusion and havoc that the Covid-19 virus and the racial strife causing. We not accustomed to that kind of life Lord, and it really telling on us. And we know we can’t handle it on our own, that we desperately need your help. 

Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat both the virus and the unrest in our streets. So Lord, we sincerely ask you today to give the governments and those involved in the forefront of this serious and unexpected storm, the sure and wise guidance to handle the situation properly, with the least amount of loss to life and property as possible. And please help those of us who must go out to work amidst all the confusion, to be responsible and to stay safe, so that we can avoid any more serious setbacks. 

And Lord, we fervently pray that You’ll use this situation to also bring a lot of backsliders back to your fold, show them the error of their ways. It’s also a good opportunity to introduce a whole new flock, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion because of the way we, your faithful believers, handle the situation. Yes Lord, please use this pandemic and the unrest in the streets as a means of restoring faith in You, so that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’ 

Now it’s time for us to go out and handle the situation like the faithful believers we consider ourselves. Much LOVE!

…anyone can plant…but it’s God ALONE…who gives the increase…