26 Mar 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a blessed day, a catalyst, accept the promises, at such times, be strong, blessings, comprehend, confident, crumbling state of mind, cry out for help, daily journey of prayer, discombobulated, don't be afraid, draw heavily, enjoying, fear not, focused, foolish pride, forgiveness, friend of Jesus, grace, grasp, grounded in God, grow, have good success, he goes before thee, he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, hurry, in god's eyes, in the midst of heartache, in trouble, Israelites, look to God first, LOVE, make our paths straight, mature, mercy, neither be dismayed, neither forsake thee, no comfort, no longer endure, no solace, of a good courage, One Year Book of Bible promises, perplexed, power, Praise the Lord, promises, quiet reassurance, remember God's goodness, Ruth Harms Calkin, saints, seeking, shaking it rough, share His love, strain, stress, take heart, the beloved of God, the benefits of God, the children of men, the Lord, the Scrip-Bit, transforming peace, trust in the Lord, Tuesday Mantra, undeserving goodness, unfathomable love, worry
Deuteronomy 31:8. And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.
Well a blessed and prosperous day to all you my Scrip-Bit friends and family! We’ve gotten over our Monday Blues and we’re now headed steadfastly for the Promised Land of Friday and another exciting weekend! Isn’t that good news? It surely is!
Ah mih people, we all know that life’s not easy, especially in these unfortunate times of much war and strife, but as true believers in Christ Jesus, we do have that assurance that all will be well with us, if we just hold on to Him and stay the course like good soldiers. And it is our avowed intention through the Bit to help us do just that!
We’re not here to ‘preachify’ (smile) but to act as a catalyst, a way and means of staying focused and grounded in the Lord and His Word, for that’s the only way we will ever grow, mature and have good success! So please don’t think that reading the Bit is enough. No! It’s only the beginning, the start of your own intimate and personal daily journey of prayer, study and meditation. It hopefully gets you going and keeps your mind on the Lord and His wonderful Word.
And I think you’ve gotten the picture by now, so enough talk. (smile) Here is something from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin that will help us handle the day, whatever it brings against us. It’s titled, ‘At Such Times.’
Please pray with me: ‘God, there are times In the midst of heartache and heartbreak When there is no comfort, no solace Anywhere at all. There are times When in my crumbling state of mind I feel I can no longer endure – Not for a day, not even an hour.
It is at such times, O God That I draw heavily Upon your unfathomable LOVE. At such times I implore Your transforming peace. At such times I live By the power and promises Of a Father who cares infinitely more Than I can begin to grasp or comprehend. Today, dear God, is “such a time.”
Ah friends, as I said above, what confident and quiet reassurance we have in the trust and promises of our wonderful God! And if by chance, today is a day where you are shaking it real rough, then don’t be afraid to cry out to Him for help and comfort! Because that’s what He’s there for!
Just like our children cry out to us earthly fathers when they find themselves perplexed or in trouble, our heavenly Father wants, expects us to call out to Him before anyone else! So please don’t put yourself through any unnecessary worry, stress and strain by looking to others to help solve your problems. Look to God FIRST, and if He so desires, He will guide you to someone else to help!
Please don’t allow foolish pride and any other nonsense to keep you from seeking and enjoying the benefits that the Lord has provided for His saints. And the Bible promise for today’s poem is also our Bit. ‘And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.’
Oh what magnificent words of comfort and reassurance spoken by Moses to the Israelites! But yuh know, because of foolish pride or whatever, they didn’t believe nor follow them, that’s why they wandered aimlessly in the wilderness for forty years and never entered the Promised Land. And the same thing will happen to us today if we don’t seriously take hold of God’s promises and apply them to our daily lives!
Please remember that whatever is written in the Good Book is for OUR BENEFIT, not the Lord’s, and when we follow it we are the ones who benefit, not the Lord. Granted, He’s happy when we follow His Word, but nothing will happen to Him if we don’t, we are the ones who will suffer the consequences.
So please, please, let’s wake up and smell the roses nuh. Let’s not be like the unbelieving, unfaithful Israelites! Would you believe that only two verses before our Bit, Moses also encouraged them with these fateful words? ‘Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.’ (Deut.31:6)
Oh my people, how many times do we have to hear that the Lord goes both before and with us in this life before we truly believe it eh? Many of us have experienced His wonderful blessings before in times of trouble, but forget them when more trials appear.
That’s wrong friends. Those are times on which to build our faith, so that when more trials appear, as they surely will, we won’t be so discombobulated, because we remember God’s goodness, His mercy, LOVE, grace and forgiveness in earlier times. And if He’s done it for us once, there’s no reason for Him not to do it again!
And all God’s children declared (right ho) a loud and grateful: ‘Praise the Lord for His undeserving goodness to the children of men. We LOVE you and bless your holy name! Amen!’ Awright mih breddren! So let’s take heart, be of good courage and trust in the Lord, so that He will make our paths straight.
Now let’s declare (right ho) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the whole world know who and whose we are. In strong voice and sincere sense of purpose: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
And if you really mean it, then let’s go out and share that LOVE and friendship with others as Jesus so greatly desires of us. Much LOVE!
…if you won’t accept the promises…then what’s the sense in believing…
10 Feb 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a better tomorrow, action, adultery, all things, anger, Anselm, ask, aspires, balance, behnd closed doors, believer in Christ, bring us through, by no means, Christ-likeness, Christian, Christian character, clear your mind, commanded, commitment, contrasts, dangerous, deceiving, depth of message, divorce, draw breath, enter into heaven, exceed, forgiveness, get better every day, go after, God brings us to, God's chosen people, God's timing, hatred, hold the pen, I say unto you, immeasurable value, in god's eyes, inspire, Israel, Jews, Law, LOVE, lust, maturity, murder, no, oath taking, outward show, possible with God, practical application, prosper, quotes, religious, retaliation, righteousness., rise up, Saturday, scribes and Pharisees, seeking, self-righteousness, significance, snow, something to ponder, speak the truth, spirit, step forward, take off, talk a good talk, the answer, the gospel in action, the Lord's will, the story of your life, the will of God, to no avail, tradition, unnecessary baggage, useless stuff, walk the walk, want to fly, weighed down, weighs you down, what you want, winter wonderland, words of jesus, write a good life story, writing
Matthew 5:20. For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case (by no means) enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Oh friends, out there is like a true winter wonderland! Everything is as white as ever, for as far as you can see. And the white stuff has begun coming down again, at least in my area. Chuh!
But that’s the Lord’s will. There isn’t anything we can really do about it. It’s winter, and that’s what happens in winter. We’ve just been lucky over the last few years not to see so much snow, so early in the season.
But remember, anything God brings us to, He will bring us through. So if you have to go out today, please be careful, because that white stuff, though it may look beautiful on the ground, like the enemy it can be very deceiving and dangerous.
And since it’s Saturday, let’s look at some of the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. Listen to this first one. ‘When writing the story of your life, don’t let anyone else hold the pen.’ And why would you want to do that eh? It’s your life. You have to control it.
Now check this out. ‘All the days that you wake up, you got one job, and that’s to get better every single day.’ And that’s oh so true, especially for a Christian. We need to aspire to grow in maturity and Christ-likeness every day that we draw breath.
That leads us to: ‘Clear your mind of can’t!’ Wonderful advice! For as a believer in Jesus Christ, ‘can’t’ is not supposed to be in our vocabulary, since ALL things are possible with God, and we are God’s chosen people!
And here’s an interesting one. ‘If you wanna fly, you got to give up the useless stuff that weighs you down.’ Is that ever so true friends! You can’t fly, or prosper, or take off, or rise up if you are being weighed down by useless and unnecessary stuff.
Note how they carefully pack airplanes and ships for balance, and consider how much stuff is placed in them, otherwise they won’t be able to lift off the ground or sail. The same goes for people, improperly placed and unnecessary baggage will hold us back.
And this last quote says: ‘If you do not go after what you want, you will never have it. If you do not ask, the answer will always be NO. If you do not step forward, you will always be in the same place.’
And that is certainly true, but for believers a serious proviso has to be added to it: All we do, must be done under the will of God, His leading, and in His awesome timing! If not, our seeking will be to no avail; we’ll never truly fly, or write a good life story. And I do hope those quotes give us something to ponder this snowy Saturday morning, as we laze around the house. (smile)
And we have a very interesting Bit today; memorable words of Jesus, as He talks about the law. ‘For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case (by no means) enter into the kingdom of heaven.’
Wow mih people! Imagine that nuh! And those people were supposed to be the most religious in their day, but Jesus lambasted them right, left and centre for their hypocritical behaviour.
Hear how the scholars explain it. ‘5:20. Because of the necessity of righteousness as a requirement to enter heaven, Jesus then declares that except their righteousness should exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees they could not enter heaven.
The significance of this is seen in the fact that the Jews of Jesus’ day considered those people to be the most religious in all Israel. However, their religion was largely an outward show of self-righteousness.
In communicating the depth of His message, Jesus used a series of contrasts between the outward behaviour demanded by the law and the inner attitude of the heart desired by God. Here we discover the practical application of genuine Christian character to true spiritual living. Here we see the gospel in action.
Law Spirit
No Murder No anger
No adultery No lust
No divorce Commitment
No oath-taking Speak the truth
No retaliation Forgiveness
Hatred for your enemy LOVE for your enemy
(tradition allowed it) (commanded)
Ah mih people, yuh see the basic difference between the laws of man and those of God. Our God expects us to come up to a higher standard than that of the basic law. Just living by the law is not good enough. And the scribes and Pharisees didn’t even truly live by the law that they propagated.
Unfortunately, so do a lot of us supposed Christians in these end times. Some of us put on a great outward show, talk a good talk, but behind closed doors it’s an entirely different story.
But please remember Jesus’ words; unless we are more righteous than the religious leaders of His day, we won’t enter heaven. Now, that’s something of immeasurable value and importance for us to ponder this Saturday morning. Much LOVE!
…unless you walk the walk…in God’s eyes…where it really matters…talking the talk is useless…
22 Dec 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a blast, a human being, a long weekend, adversary, afflictions, assert His claim, babe in swaddling clothes, be very careful, Beelzebub, big fashion, boundaries, brighten it up, called us, carnally, carousing, celebrate, celebrations, chomping at the bit, christ jesus, Christ's first Coming, Christians, Christmas Season, confirm, conqueror, destroy, dominion, drinking, drunk or sober, earthly sojourn, eating, enjoying, eternal darkness, eternal glory, evil face, family, fellowship, first coming, for all the ages, free time, Friday chant, friends, fun, further God's kingdom, generous help, glory, glory to God, grace, Granny's warning, I made it through, in Jesus' name, in the offing, left out in the cold, let our hair down, limits, LOVE, lowly, Lucifer, meaning of Christmas, mighty King, mind yuh business, modicum of circumspection, obnoxiously, one to remember, open season, over-the -top, peace, perfect, poor, prone to mistakes, refreshed, relaxation, renewed, resist, rest, right now, roaring lion, Second Coming, seeking, settle, sinful world, slave work, snow, sober, soul body mind, spiritually, stablish, steadfast, strengthen, suffered, temptaions, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the Birth of Christ, the devil, the evil one, the God of all grace, the Lord's work, the second time around, the SON, the Spirit of Jesus, the throne of David, the worst thing, thief in the night, time off, vigilant, visiting, vulnerable, walks about, week of work, weekend, white stuff, whom he may destroy, win believers, workingman, wrongdoing
1 Peter 5:8. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.
Oh my people, would you believe that that white stuff has come back again? Chuh! Thought we had gotten rid of it for a longer while with the warm temps of the last few days. But no, it’s back again, and this time it’s not as beautiful as the first.
The idea of the second time around being better than the first is definitely not true here, because it’s a dark, cloudy day, there’s no sun to physically brighten it up.
However, there is the Son! Glory to God! He’s always around to brighten up our lives, especially in this Christmas Season as we prepare to celebrate His first coming! And yuh better believe His Second Coming will be even bigger and better than the First!
For then He won’t be coming as a mere babe in swaddling clothes, poor and lowly, but as a mighty King and Conqueror, coming to assert His claim to the throne of His Father, Bruh David and finally bring some true peace and LOVE to our miserable, sinful world!
But it’s obvious you can’t have the Second without the First, and you won’t be with Him in the Second if you’re not with Him in the First! So please get with Him RIGHT NOW, otherwise it just might be too late, for He can come back at any time, like the proverbial thief in the night, and then you’ll be left out in the cold, in eternal darkness, and that’s the worst thing that can ever happen to a human being. Nuff said! (smile)
Now let’s hear what the workingman has to say on this snowy morning. As usual he loudly declares: ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday! And though it snow, that won’t keep me back from enjoying mih free time this weekend. No mih son, not at all! And yuh better believe is a real long weekend too, no more slave work until Tuesday, and is Christmas weekend to boot.
Thank God for being born on the weekend oui, so that we have more time off, more time away from the slave labour, more time with we friends and family so that we could celebrate in real big fashion; plenty eating and drinking, carousing and visiting friends and neighbours. This long Christmas weekend definitely going to be a blast! One to remember for all the ages! Thank God for it yes, mih brethren!’
Yes friends, let’s hope that this Christmas will be one we long remember, but not just for the over-the-top celebrations, but because we truly had the Spirit of Jesus in our hearts and sincerely contemplated, really pondered, the true meaning of Christ’s First Coming.
Now let’s declare our Friday Chant, which is much more circumspect than that of the ordinary workingman. As though we really mean it now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Oh my people, limits and boundaries, and still putting the Lord’s work first is a condition of our earthly sojourn, which in no way detracts from our celebrations; we just celebrate a li’l more spiritually than carnally. (smile) And I’d be very amiss from my duties if I didn’t invoke Granny’s warning at this awesome time of celebration. ‘Sonny boy, drunk or sober, please mind yuh business!’
Yes my fellow believers, Beelzebub will be all about in full deceptive fashion this long Christmas weekend! You can bet yuh bottom dollar on that! What sweeter time to catch us in wrongdoing than when we’re celebrating the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ?
You can see him in the background now, with a big smile all over his evil face, just chomping at the bit, knowing that it will be open season on many of us supposed Christians. We going to let our hair down and he’s going to jump quickly into the space we afford him.
So let’s be very careful friends. Let’s celebrate, but with a modicum of circumspection. Let’s do as our Bit so wisely advises: ’Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.’
Ah mih people, there could be no wiser advice to us all this Christmas weekend, for the evil one will definitely be out on the prowl, knowing that at this particular time of year we are very prone to mistakes, very vulnerable to his temptations.
But as Peter further cautions: ‘Whom resist steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in (are being experienced by) your brethren that are in the world.’ (1 Pet.5:9) So we are all subject to like temptations and afflictions.
‘But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish (confirm), strengthen, settle you.’ (1 Pet.5:10) Yeh friends, the same Christ Jesus that we’re celebrating will help us resist the constant temptations of the evil one. Therefore, ‘To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.’ (1 Pet.5:11)
Now brethren, let’s go out and celebrate Christ like we’ve never celebrated Him before, not obnoxiously, but with circumspection and common sense! Let’s win believers for Him, instead of loosing believers to the evil one. That’s the best way to celebrate Christ’s birth! Much LOVE!
…oh…what wonderful…but circumspect celebrations…are in the offing…this Christmas season…
09 May 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a father's wisdom, adversity, advice, almighty god, beloved of God, calamity, Christian maturity, decisions, disaster, doctrine, failure, final, friend of Jesus, from glory to glory, giving thanks, Glory to God! flooding, hear ye children, heartfelt thanks, in Jesus' name, instruction, know understanding, knowledge, Law, logic, LOVE, Missouri, my thoughts are higher than your thoughts, my thoughts are not your thoughts, my ways are higher than yours, no giving up, on the move, seek first the kingdom of God, seeking, slaving, success, the broad and destructive path, the heavens are higher than the earth, the instruction of a father, the words of my mouth, this is the day the Lord has made, times, trials, tribulations, true, Tuesday Mantra, understanding, valuable, water damage, we shall rejoice and be glad in it, work, your ways are not my ways
Proverbs 4:1. Hear ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.
And then the rains stopped… Glory to God! And the bright sunshiny, though still not so warm days returned! But thankfully, we didn’t experience the flooding and extensive water damage that the people in the U.S. state of Missouri experienced last week.
Another day of that awesome rain would certainly have put us up to the flooding level. But all thanks to our wonderful God, we did not reach it. And thus we are bold to say: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we shall rejoice and be glad in it!’
Oh friends, we never know how truly blessed we are until we see disaster and calamity happen to others nuh, and only then do we give some heartfelt thanks. But it ought not to be so. We ought to be giving thanks continually, both in the good and bad times.
Oh, we all know that it is difficult to give thanks when things are going awry, but that aspect only comes with Christian maturity, and Christian maturity only comes with adversity, with trials and tribulations, which serve to make us stronger in our faith.
Yes friends, it’s a vicious cycle that we cannot get around, if we want to grow in our faith, in our likeness to Jesus. That brings me to this quote from my ‘P.S. I LOVE You,’ Poster. ‘No failure is ever final – nor is any success.’
And as Christians we ought to strongly believe that and diligently put it into action. For remember, in Jesus’ world there is no giving up, so when we fall, we need to get back up, dust ourselves off and get back in the race; that awesome race of life in which we’re involved.
And when we are successful, we cannot afford to rest on our laurels, but continue moving upwards and onwards in Jesus. As the Good Book tells us; from glory to glory!
So as true believers, we ought always to be on the move, in some form and fashion, never standing still, never just sitting on our fannies and ‘narcissistically’ admiring, being absorbed only in our own lives, for there is always work to be done in Jesus’ name!
And thus we come to today’s Bit: ‘Hear ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.’
Ah mih breddren, instruction and understanding are ever so important in our Christian walk of faith! If we don’t receive good instruction, and then don’t understand it properly, we’ll most likely go astray, down the broad and destructive path.
Now a father’s job is to impart proper knowledge and instruction to his children, which unfortunately many fathers aren’t doing today, thus many children are going astray. But let’s listen as Cousin Sol continues his treatise on a father’s wisdom.
‘For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law. For I was my father’s son, tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother. He taught me also, and said unto me, Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments and live.
Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline (turn away) from the words of my mouth. Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: LOVE her, and she shall keep thee.’ (Prov.4:2-6)
Oh my people, what wonderful words of advice from Cousin Sol on the getting of wisdom and understanding! And it’s not really rocket science nuh, but pure and simple logic. If we have wisdom and understanding, then we’ll make wise and intelligent decisions in our lives. And what more can we ask but that eh!
The only problem though is whose or what wisdom and understanding are we seeking – that of the world, or that of Almighty God? Obviously they are both different, hold different things valuable and true.
But since we claim that God is our Creator, Controller and Provider, then it would seem that we should be seeking His wisdom and understanding, since it is higher than man’s.
As the Lord so plainly tells us through Isaiah: ‘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.55:8-9)
So why would we want to follow man’s wisdom eh? Because it is more attuned to the lusts and desires of our flesh! Simple as that!
God’s wisdom needs us to first seek His kingdom, and His righteousness, and then all the things we need would be given to us. We don’t have to go seeking and slaving after them, like we have to do, if we follow man’s wisdom.
Now doesn’t it make more sense to follow God, rather than man eh mih breddren? It certainly does! God might have more restrictions, but believe me, they are all their for our benefit. So with all of that in mind, let’s go home now declaring our Tuesday Mantra, which tells us who and whose we are, without a shadow of doubt.
As one solid group now: ‘I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
How wonderful it is to be the beloved of God and the friend of Jesus! Now let’s go out and show the world that LOVE and friendship of Jesus and our heavenly Father, like we’re supposed to. Much LOVE!
…as for me and mine…we will serve the Lord…
P.S. Please excuse the lateness of the Bit. It ‘s just one of those days. (smile) Much LOVE!
04 Mar 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a better tomorrow, aim to high, aim too low, align yourself, Anselm, balm, bane, blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, change, Christians, cleaning, comfort zone, condemned, confident, Controller of the universe, Creator, dependent trust, desolate, discomforts, drawbacks, el numero uno, exalted, fail, fall on deaf ears, fear the Lord, find good, goals, gracious, grocery shopping, handles a matter wisely, happy is he, have mercy, hedge our bets, hiccups, higher ground, his breath goeth forth, human beings, in the son of man, joy, lack, LOVE, mercy, never hang your hat where you can't reach it, no help, odd jobs, out of reach, prosperous living, put not your trust in princes, roll in smoothly, salvation, Saturday, seeking, setting goals, sleeping in late, spirit departs, spread it far and wide, stretching, the Lord redeems the soul of his servants, there is no want, thoughtful action, thoughts perish, trust, trusts in the Lord, vegetate, whose hope the Lord is, will the Lord wait, wisdom of the highest order, work ourselves to the bone, you can learn from
Jeremiah 17:7. Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is.
Saturday, O Saturday: balm for some, bane of others! Yeh friends, for some of us Saturday means not doing a whole lot, possibly sleeping in late, then moving to the couch to watch the tube. Hn!
While for others, Saturday means cleaning and grocery shopping and doing odd jobs around the house that you never had a chance to do during the week. Some of us work harder at home on Saturdays, than we do at work all week. But that’s the joy of prosperous living! (smile) We can either vegetate or work ourselves to the bone.
Anyway on Saturdays too we also look at a few of our friend Anselm’s quotes, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And this first one is ever so true. ‘Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts.’
Yes people, that’s why many of us don’t like change, even though it might improve our lives, for change doesn’t just roll in smoothly, it always causes hiccups, and sometimes some real bad ones too.
Now this second quote offers a wealth of good advice. ‘Align yourself with people that you can learn from, people who want more out of life, people who are stretching and searching and seeking some higher ground in life.’
That’s the only way we can truly grow friends! If we sincerely wish to grow, then we must surround ourselves with wise people who are striving to do the same. We ought not to be always the smartest, wisest or most accomplished person in our group, else whom are we going to learn from eh?
And this last quote is also interesting and very true. ‘Most people fail in life not because they aim too high and miss, but because they aim too low and hit.’ Bingo! Setting goals is a very serious and thoughtful action friends. We can either set them too low and hit them, but not accomplish much. Or we can set them too high and not reach them, with the same result as setting them too low.
That reminds me of the old people’s saying: Never hang your hat where you can’t reach it. But my breddren, goals should be set where they are just out of reach, where you need to extend yourself some, get a bit out of your comfort zone, otherwise they are not worth setting.
That brings us to our Bit. ‘Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is.’
Oh my fellow believers, that’s wisdom of the highest order! That’s why I don’t understand why more of us, including supposed Christians don’t follow it. If the Lord is the Creator and Controller of the universe, El Numero Uno, as we claim, then why aren’t we putting our absolute trust in Him eh? I guess some of us don’t truly believe what we spout, and try to hedge our bets by not giving God all our trust.
But please remember what we read yesterday from Psalm 146: ‘Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man (human beings), in whom there is no help (salvation). His breath goeth forth (spirit departs), he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.’ (Ps.146:3-4)
That’s gospel truth friends! We die and return to the dust from which we were created, while God lives on forever, and also knows the beginning from the end. So whom is the best one to trust eh? Both logic and wisdom tell us the Lord God Almighty!
So let’s look at some scripture that will help me convince you to put ALL your trust in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Listen to Cousin Sol from Proverbs. ‘He that handleth a matter wisely (wisely heeds the word) shall find good: and whoso trusteth in the Lord, happy is he.’ (Prov.16:20)
And if you don’t believe Cousin Sol, then hear Bruh David from Psalm 34 – The Lord hears the righteous. ‘O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. O fear the Lord, ye his saints: for there is no want (lack) to them that fear him. The young lions do lack and suffer hunger: but they that seek the Lord shall not want (lack) any good thing… The Lord redeemeth the soul of his servants: and none of them that trust him shall be desolate (condemned).’ (Ps.34:8-10; 22) I can’t dispute any of that nuh people, so I just have to believe it.
And we’ll end with something from Isaiah, where he’s appealing to his people to turn to the Lord for help, the very same thing I’m trying to do in these tumultuous times. ‘And therefore will the Lord wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the Lord is a God of judgement (justice); blessed are all they that wait for him.’ (Is.30:18)
And the scholars add this explanation. ‘30:18-33. Because God is gracious and has been willing to wait for His people to return to Him, He will certainly bless those who wait for him. “Waiting” is a confident and dependent trust in God.’
What more can I say eh friends? Not a whole lot, for I am just the messenger aspiring to deliver the message that our world needs the Lord God Jehovah more than at any other time in our existence. I just hope that the message doesn’t fall on deaf ears, and that every Christian will endeavour to put into action in their own lives, then spread it far and wide, so that our children’s children will have the chance to live in a good and beautiful world. That’s my sincere prayer for us today! Much LOVE!
…if we can’t trust our God and Creator…whom then can we trust…
SCRIP-BITS 