Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 May 2021 Romans 5:8.

08 May 2021 Leave a comment

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

Romans 5:8.     But God commendeth (demonstrated) his own LOVE toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

So what does this second Saturday in May have to offer us eh friends? Many of us will sadly say, just the same old, same old; problems and hardship, sickness and strife. And in a way that’s true, but there is also another side to the equation…remember there are always two sides to every story. And the second side to this story, this equation, is really exciting, because it entails being in league with the most powerful person in the universe, that’s Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and all those other great titles He bears. 

And when you are in league with Him, the world doesn’t bother you like it does when you’re running on your own steam. He sees every mountain, every tear drop, every broken heart, and in response to your prayer, He wipes away those tears, heals the broken hearts and helps you move the mountain. So, for those of us who have Jesus on our side, there’s no need to worry about what the world says about, or does to us, because He is the Creator of it all, and He has us all in the safe and secure palms of His hands. 

Now, with that encouragement and assurance riding high in our hearts, let’s see what quotes our friend Anselm sent us this week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And the first one truthfully proclaims: ‘You’re a work of art. Not everyone will understand you, but the ones who do, will never forget about you.’ Yes friends, we are all unique works of art, created by a Master craftsman. We are all different. No two of us have the same fingerprints or footprints. That alone tells us how great our Maker is. 

Hear how Bruh David puts it in Psalm 139. ‘For thou hast possessed my reins (formed my inward parts): thou hast covered me (weaved me) in my mother’s womb. I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well (very well).’ (Ps. 139:13-14) That means you ought to be proud of whom you are, because God is proud of you. 

That brings us to this next quote: ‘If you don’t LOVE yourself, nobody will. Not only that, but you also won’t be good at LOVING anyone else. LOVING starts with the self.’ And the first two sentences are absolutely true. The last one poses a slight problem, because as Jesus says: The first commandment is, ‘Thou shalt LOVE the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind… And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt LOVE thy neighbour as thyself.’ (Matt. 22:37, 39) So, technically speaking, the first person we should LOVE is God, then ourselves. And if we don’t LOVE ourselves, we certainly won’t be able to LOVE anyone else, for we can only give away what we have. 

Now listen to this next quote. I find it rather interesting. ‘Falling in LOVE with yourself first doesn’t make you vain or selfish. It makes you indestructible.’ Wow! That’s a new one to me. I’ve never heard it put that way before. Of course, if you fall in LOVE with yourself the right way, it won’t make you vain or selfish, only if you get narcissistic about it. But I can’t vouch for the indestructible aspect nuh, because when we genuinely LOVE, the more vulnerable we become, and that surely doesn’t lead to indestructability. I guess though, that when we have a heart full of LOVE, like Jesus, we can better handle the heartaches that come with it. 

And so, we come to this next quote: ‘SELF- LOVE. It doesn’t mean that everyone will treat you the way you deserve to be treated. It means that you won’t let them change the way you see yourself; nor will you stick around for them to destroy you.’ Like our friend Anselm was in a SELF-LOVE mode this past week. (smile) But I like that quote, because it means that you are strong in your belief in yourself, obviously with Jesus as your foundation stone, and you realize that the world is neither fair nor genuine, so everyone won’t feel the way you feel about yourself. 

It wasn’t easy with Jesus, where even His family and His townsfolks didn’t believe in Him. But He believed in His Father, and thus in Himself, and was therefore able to go about doing His work with confidence and purpose. That’s how we need to be friends; strong and sure in ourselves, through the promises and deeds of Jesus, so that we can confidently go about doing whatever He desires of us. 

And our last quote is another interesting one. It says: ‘Demonstrate LOVE by giving it, unconditionally, to yourself. And as you do, you will attract others into your life who will LOVE you without conditions.’ Now that’s a bit of a minefield. How do you demonstrate unconditional LOVE to yourself, without others getting displeased, especially in this godless, selfish and deceitful world? I guess we should first look at the difference between conditional and unconditional LOVE. 

One commentator puts it thus: ‘A clear distinction is commonly understood: Conditional LOVE is “earned” on the basis of certain conditions that should be met, while unconditional LOVE is given freely and completely without expecting anything in return. LOVING conditionally means to LOVE if the object deserves the LOVE, whereas LOVING unconditionally means to LOVE despite the object being unworthy of LOVE.’ 

And technically speaking, the only person that LOVES unconditionally is our great God. He LOVES the sinner as well as the saint, though in His holiness and righteousness, He can’t allow the sinner to get away scot-free with sin. That’s why He sent Jesus to die on our behalf, so that our sins could be blotted out in one fell swoop. However, being the emotional and irrational beings that we are, we hold back, or desire LOVE on certain terms, which doesn’t really agree with what Jesus is trying to do, or what the Father desires of us. 

So, to help us in that department, let’s go home today pondering on this magnificent and most pertinent scripture. ‘But God commendeth (demonstrated) his own LOVE toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.’ (Rom. 5:8) Yes friends, imagine that nuh. God didn’t wait for us to change, He did what He had to do unconditionally. Let’s see if we can’t be a li’l more like Him nuh. It would benefit us no end. Much LOVE!

…LOVE should not have to be…deserved or earned…                                 

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Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 August 2019 Matthew 22:37.

24 Aug 2019 Leave a comment

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

Matthew 22:37.    Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt LOVE the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment.

Oh what a beautiful morning! Oh what a beautiful day! It’s somewhat windy and chilly… But everything’s still going our way!’ And for that we have to give much thanks and praise to our heavenly Father for allowing us to enjoy another joyful day down here on planet earth! Praise His holy name friends! Exalt Him to the very ends of the earth, for He is indeed worthy to be praised and exalted!

And having paid our respects to our God, Creator, Provider, etc. etc. let’s see what bits of wisdom our friend Anselm has to offer us this Saturday morning. Hear this first one: ‘Don’t Take Anything Personally. Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won’t be the victim of needless suffering.’

Now I don’t know if I agree with all of that nuh. Granted, you can’t be open to the slightest of offences, and people do project their own ideas on you, but you shouldn’t be immune to their opinions and action, because ofttimes, though their motives might be selfish, some of their ideas might be sound and thus beneficial. You need to have a tough character, so to speak, but also an open mind, for pearls of wisdom can come from even the most unlikely sources.

And the next quote wisely advises: ‘To avoid a breakdown, take a break for rest and prayer.’ And is that ever so true! There’s so much meltdown and breakdown in our society today because we live in a fast paced, dog-eat-dog, rat race where there’s never enough time for rest and prayer.

That’s because we don’t make time for it, being too busy trying to keep up with the world and all it’s distractions. And that’s especially true of believers! Oh precious people of God, please, let’s slow down, let’s make time for rest and for God nuh. That’s the only way we can truly enjoy this earthly life!

Then there’s this: ‘Be Impeccable With Your Words. Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the Word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.’ How true my friends, how true all of that is! But unfortunately nowadays most of that has gone out the window, into the trash can of history, especially in these times of all-pervasive social media and all the talking that’s going on.

We no longer think about what we say, before we say it, we just gush everything from the lip, regardless of the possible consequences. Sorry, no one considers consequences anymore, even though there are a lot of sad and tearful ones occurring each and every minute of each and every day!

And don’t talk about integrity nuh! What’s that eh? That’s what a lot of us might ask when posed with that quote. There’s no longer any integrity in our sad and sorrowful world. And that’s basically being of true and sound character, your word being your bond, given to trust and being trusted, fulfilling obligations as agreed upon, etc. etc. Even supposedly lawful contracts are being reneged on every day, so who’s going to stand on their word eh?

Christians ought to! True believers in Christ Jesus are supposed to stand by their promises, just like Jesus did and still does by His. None of us would be happy if Jesus broke any of His promises. We’d be ever so quick to pull Him down, to make a mockery of Him. But it’s okay for us to do it. Ah friends, as they say, what’s good for the goose, is also good for the gander.

Remember these immortal words of Jesus: ‘Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgement ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete (use), it shall be measured you again.’ (Matt.7:1-2) Those are words of great truth friends, for whatever you give out, you will eventually get back; like a boomerang, all your deeds will eventually come back to haunt you, or what you sow, you will eventually reap.

As Uncle Charles (Charles Stanley) likes to say: ‘More than you sow, and later than you sow.’ That’s why we have to adopt the principles mentioned in this last quote as quickly and thoroughly as possible, and also spread them world wide so that our world can be greatly improved. ‘More smiling, less worrying. More compassion, less judgment. More blessed, less stressed. More LOVE, less hate.’

Mamacita! What a wonderful world we’d have if those things played a larger role in our lives! And yuh know what my people? I believe that all of that quote falls under these simple but far-reaching words of Jesus, which He answered to the Pharisee lawyer who tried to tempt Him, by asking:

‘Master (Teacher), which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt LOVE the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment.’ (Matt.22:36-38)

And so it is indeed my fellow believers. The first and most important thing for mankind to do is to LOVE our Creator with all that we have! That sets the tone and direction for everything else in our lives. But the interesting thing in this session is that the man asked about the great commandment, and Jesus gave it to him, but He didn’t stop there. He continued: ‘And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt LOVE thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.’ (Matt.22:39-40)

And our Lord and Saviour and Leader and God, Jesus Christ would never lie to us! So therefore it must be of the uttermost importance that we concentrate in this life on LOVE for our great and wonderful heavenly Father, then LOVE for ourselves, and also LOVE for our neighbours.

But friends, please pay attention to Jesus’ words, ‘LOVE thy neighbour as thyself.’ That means we can only LOVE our neighbours as much as we LOVE ourselves. And we’re not talking in a narcissistic way. But unfortunately, in these trying and troublesome times, too many of us don’t LOVE ourselves, that’s why we can’t LOVE our neighbours. Remember, we can only give what and as much as we have!

And that’s a major reason why our world is in such turmoil. So please, today, let’s ponder the state of our self-LOVE nuh. And whatever state it might be in, let’s ask the Lord for His grace and mercy to bring it up higher, so that we can also LOVE others more, and fulfill His commandment, and thus make our world a much better place for our children and future generations! Let’s let out legacy be one of LOVE! Much LOVE!

…the basic Christian motto…do unto others…as you would have them do unto you…

 

 

 

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Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 June 2019 Proverbs 18:21.

08 Jun 2019 Leave a comment

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

Proverbs 18:21.    ​Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that LOVE it, shall eat the fruit thereof.
 

Brother, it’s Saturday and I’m up early to write the Bit so that I can go to a Pentecost Prayer breakfast at my church, though I would have liked to sleep in some. But them’s the breaks. And it’s usually a good time and well attended, so no worries really. Oh, and Alyssa is home from the hospital, doing fairly well, as well as can be expected after major surgery. She sends her thanks for all the prayers you sent up to heaven on her behalf, and wouldn’t mind some more for a speedy not so painful recovery. (smile) 

And yuh better believe that the workingman was in seventh heaven yesterday afternoon when he got home and found that it was a wonderful summer’s day! I can just imagine how he quickly threw on his short shorts and tank top, then went outside and fired up the barbecue, threw on his meats, then sat quietly, or listening to some joyful music, sipping some brewskis and contemplating life, while the meat sizzled on the grill. Now is that the life or what! 

And I’m sure the same thing will be happening all around the place today, as it seems to be another nice day in the offing. Wow! Three nice days in a row! That’s what you called blessed! (smile) But enough with the small talk, because it’s Saturday and our friend Anselm sent us a whole slew of quotes this week, and some long ones too. So let’s get to them nuh, showing our appreciation for his sincere aspiration to inspire us for a better tomorrow. 

And here is the first one: ‘I think it’s important to get your surroundings as well as yourself into a positive state – meaning surround yourself with positive people, not the kind who are negative and jealous of everything you do.’ And I couldn’t agree more. Jesus also agrees, because negative and jealous people only drag you down, while you are trying to build yourself up. And to be a follower of Jesus, you must be a positive thinker, because He was the most positive thinking person that ever lived. He had to be, since He was the Son of God, and in God there is no negativity. 

Then there is this related quote. ‘Spending time with negative people can be the fastest way to ruin a good mood. Their pessimistic outlooks and gloomy attitude can decrease our motivation and change the way we feel. But allowing a negative person to dictate your emotions gives them too much power in your life. Make a conscious effort to choose your attitude.’ Ah friends, all of that is so true! And a successful life is based so much on our attitude toward our situations and circumstances, we can’t give others the leeway to make us become a negative person. 

And thus we have to make a conscious effort to resist negativity, because ‘It’s not the situation, but whether we react negatively or respond positively to the situation that is important.’ Yeh mih people, many of us face the same basic situations, but our responses to them vary a lot, thus our results also vary a lot. And those who have a positive outlook, with Jesus as their anchor and foundation, usually have better outcomes. No ifs and buts about that! 

Therefore, ‘Stop saying these negative things about yourself. Look in the mirror and find something about yourself that’s positive and celebrate that!’ Oh friends, remember God spoke the world into existence, that means words are powerful, and what we say, usually comes to pass. As Cousin Sol so wisely and rightly tells us: ‘Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that LOVE it, shall eat the fruit thereof.’ 

And as Jesus also informs us: ‘For by words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.’ (Matt.12:37) So if we keep saying negative things about ourselves it’s obvious that our lives will proliferate with negative stuff. Now we don’t have to go overboard and get narcissistic with it, (smile) but a healthy dose of self-LOVE and self-confidence goes a long way towards brightening our lives. 

And instead of celebrating our faults and failures, let’s start celebrating our good points and successes, even though they may be few. Jesus didn’t die for us to lead a miserable, negative and unhappy existence, but for us to enjoy life, in abundance, with joy and laughter uppermost in our lives. So let’s do that nuh. 

And to successfully accomplish that goal, the first thing we need to do is to think right thoughts, as our last quote reminds us. ‘I realized that if my thoughts immediately affect my body, I should be careful about what I think. Now if I get angry, I ask myself why I feel that way. If I can find the source of my anger, I can turn that negative energy into something positive.’ 

Ah mih people, that’s the answer to our many problems right there; our thoughts! We need to understand that the battle for supremacy over our lives begins right in our minds. As Sister Joyce (Joyce Meyer) calls it: ‘The Battlefield of the Mind!’ And count on Cousin Sol to have a word on it. ‘For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.’ (Prov.23:7) 

Yes friends, as we think, so are we! Whatever is uppermost in our minds, is the direction in which we will generally be led. That’s why the enemy keeps flooding our minds with all of his deceit and lies, for he knows that if we think on them, we will eventually end up going in that direction. 

And that’s why Bruh Paul admonished the Philippians, and consequently us, thus: ‘Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest (noble), whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise (anything praiseworthy), think (meditate) on these things. Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do; and the God of peace shall be with you.’ (Phil.4:8-9) 

It couldn’t be put any clearer than that my fellow saints in Christ. As the scholars explain: ‘In order to keep God’s peace, the readers must occupy their minds with the right things (v8) and busy themselves with the right activities (v.9).’ Now it’s all up to us to integrate those attitudes into our lives. Much LOVE!

…one must make a conscious decision…to think right…and to do right…they won’t happen by osmosis…(smile)