Today’s Scrip-Bit   10 March 2024 Proverbs 16:3.

10 Mar 2024 Leave a comment

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

Proverbs 16:3.        Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established.

And the days fly by so quickly, that without us even realizing it, Sunday has come around again. That means going to God’s house to fellowship with other believers, renew our vows and build our confidence for the upcoming week. And sadly, some of us don’t really realize that the awesome benefit of going to church on a Sunday is not merely to sing and praise God, but also very importantly to receive His strength and blessings so that we can handle whatever comes against us in the week with the utmost faith and confidence. Our God isn’t so selfish to tell us to come to church every Sunday just to praise and worship Him. No! He also has something valuable and important to offer us. 

So when we implore us to go to church, it’s because visiting God’s house is a two-way and not a one -way street. (smile) And we’ll open today’s worship with a beautiful song of praise titled ‘Let Go And Let God,’ written by Olivia Newton John, in tandem with the American pianist-composer Kim Bullard, and the Canadian singer-songwriter Amy Sky, who also produced it. The website songfacts.com, tells us that the song comes from John’s ‘Grace and Gratitude Album, which is filled with inspirational songs influenced by various religions. It is designed for meditation and healing, with instrumental interludes between songs. 

Olivia Newton-John is (was) Christian, but is (was) open to the teachings of other faiths. Inspired by the writings of Deepak Chopra and Carolyn Myss, “Let Go Let God” is a song about finding strength through surrender, something Olivia Newton-John did after being diagnosed with breast cancer in 1992. Her cancer returned in 2017 and again in 2020, but she remained resolute, telling The Guardian (newspaper): “I see it as my life’s journey. It gave me purpose and intention and taught me a lot about compassion.” She passed away in 2022 at 73. 

About 90 seconds into the song, the Buddhist chant of “Nam-myoho-renge-kyo” comes in. This mantra was developed by the monk Nichiren (1222–1282) to signify the human capacity to overcome challenges and grow from them. The chant is designed to activate this power.’ However, we’ll leave out the chant today, because it’s too difficult to pronounce and may cause some confusion. (smile) And now that we know the song’s origins and what it stands for, let’s sing it, offer up sweet sacrifices of praise, in a mid-tempo soulful version, that will touch the hearts of all who hear it in heaven. 

Singing: ‘When you can’t find your direction, and your heart won’t guide you home – Let go – and let God. When your dreams are broken in the dust, and you’ve lost the will to trust – Let go – and let God. (Chorus: Let the signs remind you, we are passengers. Let the signs remind you to surrender, to surrender – Let go- and let God. (Background vocals – Chant… Nam-myoho-renge-kyo (4 times) When your faith is a dying fire, and there’s no spark to feed the flame – Let go – and let God. When your courage fails you, and the well of hope runs dry – Let go – and let God. (Chorus: Let the signs remind you, we are passengers. Let the signs remind you to surrender, to surrender – Let go- and let God. (Chant – Nam-myoho-renge-kyo (4 times) Let the signs remind you -to surrender, to surrender, to Let go – and let God, let go – and let God’ 

Ah friends, it definitely is an interesting song, filled with lots of faith and encouragement, but the major theme is total surrender to God, especially when you cannot find sufficient strength of your own to pull you up. And that’s wisdom in spades, for when you can’t handle a situation, the best thing is to turn to someone who can, as evidenced by Newton John’s own life’s journey. And our great God Jehovah can certainly handle any and every situation which may befall us. 

Now, how do we surrender to God, you ask? This commentary succinctly explains it. ‘It involves seeking His guidance, following His Word, aligning our will with His, and relying on His promises. In this act of surrender, we find true freedom and peace. We release the burden of trying to figure everything out on our own and instead embrace the assurance that God is in control.’  I could not have put it any better myself friends. It’s all about giving our lives completely over to the Lord and allowing Him to lead and guide them. And we have a very relevant scripture from Cousin Sol that says it like it is: ‘Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established.’ (Prov. 16:3) 

And this commentary from the bibleref.com website enlightens us as to its meaning. ‘The best chance for success comes when plans are aligned with truth. That means those who submit to God’s will and seek Him are in a better position than those who ignore or reject Him. Following God is never a guarantee of earthly success (John 16:33).’ (Where Jesus tells us that in the world we will have trials and tribulations)  ‘However, acting in accordance with truth and goodness removes many dangers from life (Proverbs 1:7; 13:20-22). When someone’s efforts are fully entrusted to God’s will and His control—when they are “committed” to Him—those labors are less likely to cause their own downfall.’ 

And to prove that surrendering to God is man’s best choice, we also have the same advice from Bruh David in Psalm 37: ‘’Commit thy way unto the Lord, trust in him, and he shall bring it to pass.’ (Ps. 37:5) And I like how the website bibleref.com uses the example of Abraham sending his servant to his relatives to search for a wife for Isaac. It says: ‘Abraham charged his servant with the formidable task of finding a bride for his son Isaac, and his servant was successful in the commission of the assignment. He did not depend upon his own intelligence or preference. He asked the Lord to guide him to the right person (Gen. 24:42-44). When he found Rebekah, the right person, he offered thanks to the Lord for guidance (Gen. 24:48). When he asked her parents for permission to take her to Isaac, he said, “Do not delay me, since the LORD has prospered my way” (Gen. 24:56).’ 

It couldn’t get any clearer than that my faithful brethren. God is trustworthy right to the very end! And there are several other scriptures that advice us to put our absolute trust and faith in Almighty God, for we cannot ever go wrong by doing so. Thus, as bibleref.com further tells us: ‘When a believer sincerely depends upon the Lord for the understanding to do His will, he is not disappointed. Proverbs 3:5-6 counsels: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” 

And that’s the gospel truth my people! So let’s hope on this somewhat damp and cloudy Sunday morning in March of 2024, we will all heed those scriptural warnings, and wisely surrender our lives to our wonderful Creator, so that we can fully enjoy the abundant life that His awesome Son Jesus Christ died for us to have!  Much LOVE!

…All to Jesus, I surrender…All to Thee I freely give…I will ever love and trust You…In Your presence daily live…

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit   19 February 2023 Jeremiah 29:11.

19 Feb 2023 Leave a comment

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

Jeremiah 29:11.        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).

Well hello there you beautiful believers in Christ Jesus! As you’ve probably guessed, (smile) it’s that blessed day again, Sunday, the day of our Lord God Jehovah! That means it’s time once more to gather in brotherly fellowship and celebrate with worship, praise and thanksgiving, Jehovah’s amazing, unconditional LOVE and mighty deeds to His children!  

And there’s no better time in the lives of believers than when they gather to honour and acclaim our wonderful Creator, for then our faith, hope and dreams are revitalized and our confidence in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is renewed, and we can go out and face the evil world with overwhelming vim and vigour, letting the unbelieving world know that Christ is the answer: the answer to all of life’s questions! 

And today’s song is a gentle reminder to all of us, of where to turn when the problems of life get us down, and our faith is somewhat on the low side. It’s a song by the late Olivia Newton-John titled ‘Let Go – And Let God,’ from her album ‘Grace and Gratitude,’ something we ought to have a lot of because of the awesome grace we receive from God. So, let’s offer up our sacrificial praise this morning in an easy, soulful, heartfelt version of the song. 

Singing: ‘When you can’t find your direction, and your heart won’t guide you home – Let go – and let God. When your dreams are broken in the dust, and you’ve lost the will to trust – Let go – and let God. (Chorus: Let the signs remind you, we are passengers. Let the signs remind you to surrender, to surrender – Let go- and let God. (Background vocals – When you’re holding in, when you’re holding in, when you’re holding in, when you’re holding in.) When your faith is a dying fire, and there’s no spark to feed the flame – Let go – and let God. When your courage fails you, and the well of hope runs dry – Let go – and let God. 

(Chorus: Let the signs remind you, we are passengers. Let the signs remind you to surrender, to surrender – Let go- and let God. (Background vocals – When you’re holding in, when you’re holding in, when you’re holding in, when you’re holding in.) Let the signs remind you -to surrender, to surrender, to Let go – and let God, let go- and let God’ 

Oh my fellow saints, those five words – ‘Let go – and let God,’ are ever so important in lives. In fact, they are very crucial and critical, because we cannot access God’s goodness and mercy unless we let go, unless we surrender our will to His! That’s the only way He can help us. The problem though is that too many of us want to hold on to our will and also have God’s grace and mercy. But unfortunately my brethren, it doesn’t work that way. God has specified many times in the scriptures that it’s either His way or the highway! 

Remember how the prophet Isaiah stated it, when reminding his people, Israel, that God abundantly pardons. He said: ‘Seek ye the Lord while he may be found. Call upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.’ (Is. 55:6-9) 

That puts the whole thing in its proper perspective my people. God calls the shots, not us! He is the Creator, and we are simply the created. And if we know our place, then He will overwhelm us with His goodness and grace, as He said through the prophet Jeremiah. ‘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) 

That’s the second aspect of the situation; God has wonderful plans in store for us, if we will only listen and follow His will. But the truly marvellous and awesome thing about our God is that He forgives, and doesn’t ever turn anyone away. So even if we are bent on doing it our way and encounter problems, if we turn to Him, surrender our will to His, He will enable us to keep on keeping on. 

As the song says, let the signs remind us that we are only passengers, and instead of holding in our doubts, fears, anxieties and whatever negative stuff that’s baffling us, to surrender, to let go and let God handle it, for He is omnipotent, omniscient and omni-present, which means He can handle any and everything! And it’s sad, because God gave us free will, hoping that we would be wise enough to walk this life with Him. However, we’ve taken that free will and abused it, foolishly thinking we could do it all on our own. 

But that’s impossible, because God made us so that we can only live this life successfully with Him as our guide and enabler. And it’s because we don’t walk in His light that we get lost, lose our direction and our courage, while our faith withers, as our dreams lie broken in the dust, our well of hope runs dry and we can’t find a spark to feed the flames of our passion. 

And Jesus said it all, when He read from the Book of Isaiah on the Sabbath Day in His hometown of Nazareth. ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised (oppressed), To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.’ (Luke 4:18-19) 

Now that’s what our wonderful God is all about through His Son Jesus! That’s why He allowed Him to be crucified on the cross of Calvary; so that the lost could be found, the blind given sight, those living in darkness, light, those without hope, strong faith, those bound in the captivity of sin, freedom and eternal life. But we must surrender to God’s will, let Him fill that empty space in our souls that He’s reserved especially for Himself, that ONLY He can fill. 

Please realize friends, that God didn’t create us on a whim and a fancy, but on a well thought out plan, that took everything that could possibly happen into account. So He’s not surprised when we get lost and go astray, because He’s already planned for that eventuality; for all eventualities. But the ball is still in our court, we must play our part before He can play His. Much LOVE!

… surrender and repentance must be made…before forgiveness and grace are offered…  

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

Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 June 2018 Ephesians 3:20.

24 Jun 2018 Leave a comment

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

Ephesians 3:20.   Now unto him that is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us.

Ah mih breddren, it’s another rainy day in my area. Now that’s good for the plants and the animals, but it will force our church picnic to be held indoors, for a second consecutive year, if I’m not mistaken. However as usual, I went to the early service, that’s why the Bit is so late, and hopefully will go back later to get some of the good food that’s always present at our picnic. (smile) 

Anyway, please don’t let the rain keep you from attending the Lord’s sanctuary today. You know, for some reason, Christians use the simplest excuse to not go to church. But whom do you think suffers, God? No, we mortal fools do. Anyway, let’s open the proceedings with some praise and worship to soften up our hearts and make them more receptive to God’s word. 

And today we’ll sing a soulful ditty from Olivia Newton John’s Album, ‘Grace and Gratitude,’ titled, ‘Let Go and Let God.’ With strong voices and sincere hearts now, let’s sing: ‘When you can’t find your direction, And when your heart won’t guide you home… Let go – and let God. When your dreams are broken in the dust, And you’ve lost the will to trust… Let go – and let God. 

(Chorus: Let the signs remind you, we are passengers. Let the signs remind you to surrender, to surrender. Let go – and let God. (Background vocals – When you’re holding in your…when you’re holding in your…when you’re holding in your…when you’re holding in your…Let go – and Let God.) 

When your faith is a dying fire, and there’s no spark to feed the flame… Let go – and let God. When your courage fails you, and the well of hope runs dry… Let go – and let God. (Chorus Let the signs remind you…etc.  Let go – and let God…Let go – and let God.’ 

Oh my people, those are such excellent and reassuring words for us in all aspects and times of life. It’s the wisest thing for us to do; to just let go and let God be God in our lives, for that’s all He really asks of us. But like stubborn, hard headed children, since He’s given us free will, we want to do our own thing and just make a mess of our lives in so doing. 

That’s why today, we’re going to consider Bruh Paul’s prayer for inner growth in his letter to the Ephesians, for only through inner growth and maturity in our Christian faith, are we fully able to let go, to surrender our all to God and let him control our lives. 

Listen to Bruh Paul: ‘For this cause (Paul’s mission to the Gentiles) I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named (derived), That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; 

That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye being rooted and grounded in LOVE, May be able to comprehend (understand) with all saints what is the breadth (width), and length, and depth, and height: And to know the LOVE of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye may be filled with all the fullness of God.’ (Eph.3:14-19) 

Oh precious people of God, those are exactly the same things we need prayer for today; that we be strengthened by God’s mighty Spirit, so that we can successfully live the Christian life.  And for Christ to dwell sincerely in our hearts rooted and grounded in LOVE, as well as understand the great, the enormous LOVE that Christ has for us. And to be filled with all the fullness of God, ‘that is, that the life, character, and virtues of God Himself may be fully developed in us.’ 

And how do we come by all of that wonderful stuff eh? By doing what Bruh Paul did, praying to Almighty God! As our Bit so powerfully declares: ‘Now unto him that is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us.’ Yeh friends, that’s who is able to make all that wonderful stuff happen to and for us! 

As the scholars tell us: ‘3:20. In making the three above petitions (vs.16-19), Paul has not asked for too much. For he prays unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we can ask or think.’ Yes mih breddren, the God we serve and worship can indeed do much much more than we can ever ask or imagine. Our finite and puny minds can never come up with something He can’t do. 

Bruh Paul reminds the Corinthians: ‘Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.’ (1 Cor.1:25) Hn! And if you don’t believe Bruh Paul, then listen to the Lord Himself through the voice of the prophet Isaiah. 

‘For my thoughts (purposes, intentions) are not your thoughts, neither are your ways (directions) my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.’ (Is.55:8-9) And that’s the gospel truth my fellow believers! For if God couldn’t do much more than us, why would we need Him eh? No reason whatsoever! 

Unfortunately though, that’s what some foolish men are preaching and too many foolish men believing! But can the same fools guarantee anything to man, their breath of life, or how long it will last? No! That should remind us of Jesus’ parable re the rich fool, who had so much that he thought he’d just big build bigger and better storehouses to provide for his later years. But when his soul was required of him that same night, he was unable to stop it. 

Ah friends, please don’t listen to the false teachers and preachers that abound in today’s society. Please read and meditate on the Good Book for yourself, so you’ll know what’s true from what is not. For the Lord is the One who created us and works all things in our lives. And as Bruh Paul ended that chapter: ‘Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen!’ (Eph.3:21) 

Please enjoy a blessed day! Much LOVE!

…once more I ask…how can the created…ever be greater than the Creator eh…