Today’s Scrip-Bit 29 January 2020 John 14:1.

29 Jan 2020 Leave a comment

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

John 14:1.    ​Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
 
Well it’s Wednesday; the middle of the work week, the hump day, where we feel like we’ve finally gotten hold of, gotten over that invisible hump, where work takes up most of our time. But work certainly takes up most of our time in this life yes! Most of us work five days a week for an average of forty years, then we retire, thankful that there’s no work on the horizon, the early mornings and late nights are finally done! 

But yuh know what? After doing something for forty years it’s hard to get accustomed to not doing anything, to not have to get up and go to work every day, although we complained most days about having to get up and go to work! Hn! And if we just loll about in retirement and don’t keep busy, then our bodies give up and we head back to the dust from which we’ve come, sooner than expected. We’re creatures of habit. That’s the contrariness of the human animal! (smile) 

And I finally finished watching the second half of the movie ‘Gone with the Wind.’ And it is indeed an epic story. But if the truth be told, nothing has really changed in our world since then nuh; that civil  war didn’t solve a whole lot, possibly besides the end of slavery, because there have been several bigger and more brutal wars since then, there’s still too much racism, overt and covert, still too much avarice and greed and jealously and strife, too much poverty and sickness and advantage, too much injustice and discrimination, be it by race, colour, class or creed, despite all the supposed advances we’ve made! 

Yes friends, our world is still a hotbed of dissension and disagreement! And yuh know what? It’s getting worse! Just look around at all the discontent between friends and families, between neighbours and nations…we’ve come closer together in terms of distance and communication, but we’ve gotten further apart in terms of true fellowship. There are more lonely people around now even with the advent of cell phones and social media, because that communication is basically impersonal; half the time you don’t even know who you’re really dealing with. 

Oh my people, the ONLY true solution to what ails our world is JESUS! He is the ONLY ONE who can truly bring us all together and give us the peace, LOVE and joy that we all seem to clamour for, but are far from experiencing! But strangely enough, Jesus is also one of the biggest factors of contention in our world; you either LOVE Him or hate Him with a passion! 

But let me ask you a few questions? Who is the ONLY ONE that came down from heaven, was made man, made in our image and lived amongst us like us eh? JESUS CHRIST! Who is the ONLY ONE who died on a cross to take away our sins, to give us another option besides hellfire and damnation with Satan eh? JESUS CHRIST! Who is the ONLY ONE who died and rose from the grave and ascended back into heaven with the promise to come back for us when we have made disciples of all the nations so that nobody will be lost to Beelzebub eh? JESUS CHRIST! 

Oh precious people, who said these momentous words with this awesome promise? ‘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 and 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) 

Oh friends, Jesus had no cause to lie. They saw Him do numerous miracles. They saw Him crucified on the cross at Calvary, then rise up again. Yuh think if the early believers didn’t see Christ after He rose from the dead, they would have believed him and done what He asked and waited for Him? No way Jose! 

Hear the scholars: ‘14:1. Let not your heart be troubled refers to Peter, Jesus having just told him of his imminent denial of his Lord (13:38). But the larger reference is to all the apostles, through whom Jesus is going to lay the foundation of the church. His comfort also includes instruction about His departure, the sending of the Holy Spirit, the promise of spiritual power, of answered prayer, and of peace, but especially the promise of His return.’ And a great shout of ‘Praise the Lord!’ echoes far and wide across the land in anticipation of that most wonderful promise! 

Yes friends, Jesus is the ONLY ONE who desires to build a group of people, His church, on the basis of LOVE, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness (kindness), goodness, faith (faithfulness), meekness and temperance (self-control). And if you didn’t recognize them, they are the fruit of the Spirit, seeds of which are planted in our own spirit when we do the wise thing and receive Christ as our Lord and Saviour. It’s then left up to us to water and nurture them and let them grow in and through us, by reading His Word and sincerely living it. 

That’s why Jesus said: ‘Wherefore by their fruit ye shall know them,’ speaking of false prophets and evil deceivers. (Matt.7:20) A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, neither can a corrupt tree produce good fruit. And we need to also remember these famous words of Bruh Paul to the Corinthians: ‘And now abideth faith, hope, charity (LOVE), these three; but the greatest of these is charity (LOVE).’ (1 Cor. 13:13). 

Yes brothers and sisters, LOVE is indeed the greatest, because God is LOVE, and LOVE does no harm, but covers a multitude of sins, neither is there any fear in LOVE! And if  God first LOVED us, then we should also LOVE Him, and LOVE one another too: those are His two greatest desires! And now that all of that is indelibly written in our hearts, minds, bodies and souls, let’s go home celebrating our position in Christ by declaring (chuh!) our Wednesday Wail. 

Altogether now, in strong voice and sincere hearts: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’ And in light of all Jesus has promised, friends, it will certainly be a glorious future indeed! Much LOVE!

…JESUS…the answer to EVERYTHING…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 25 January 2020 Philippians 3:14.

25 Jan 2020 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Philippians 3:14.    ​I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
 
And on a rainy, somewhat gloomy looking Saturday morning, the urge to sleep in was irresistible, especially when the beddy-bye time was the wee hours of the morn. (smile) I was up late watching the epic movie ‘Gone with the Wind.’ And it has to be one of the best movies ever made, simply because of it’s scope, grandeur and length; 4 hours. It must have taken a long time to make since they didn’t have all the computer stuff and special effects back in 1939 when it was first released, that we have now. 

And it just shows the utter wastefulness of war; the civil war in the U.S, where the old South is fighting to keep a style of life that has outlived its usefulness, with slavery and the grand families, plantations and mansions of the time as its centre piece. However, by the time I got to the intermission, it was already 4 a.m. so I shut it down until another time. 

Anyway, it’s Saturday, so let’s see what mental goodies our friend Anselm sent us this week nuh, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And I’m in a quandary here, not knowing where to begin and end, as each of the quotes seem to have real truth, substance and body to them. (smile) Ah, the best place to begin is always the beginning! And the first quote tells us: ‘Keep a good attitude and do the right thing even when it’s hard. When you do that you are passing the test. And God promises you your marked moments are on their way.’

 Now that’s ever so true my faithful brethren! It’s exactly what our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ expects from ALL His followers! It’s not easy to do, but with His help we can do it. That’s why He told us to not to indulge in an eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth situation, to go the extra mile, to turn the other cheek, to give away our coat too, and to LOVE our enemies, bless them and pray for them.’ (Matt.5:38) That’s also why Bruh Paul told us not to recompense evil with evil, but to overcome evil with good.’ (Rom. 12:17, 21) 

And that runs right into the next dandy of a quote: ‘There is nothing better than adversity. Every defeat, every heartbreak, every loss, contains its own seed, its own lesson on how to improve your performance next time.’ Ah friends, none of us like adversity, but unfortunately that’s the only way we grow in our faith walk and learn from our mistakes. It’s only when we go through rough times that we actually have to use our faith to help us get through them. Otherwise our faith just sits dormant and thus cannot grow. 

Look at all the great people of faith, they all went through tough times, especially Jesus! Yuh think He really wanted to go though all the rejection and ‘sufferation’ He endured? Not really, but it was all a learning curve, so that He could be strong enough to endure the cross! And please remember His most reassuring and encouraging words: ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) Precious people of Christ, those are words we should have written deep in our souls so that we can use them when adversity comes a calling, as it invariably will during our earthly sojourn. 

Then there are also these awesome words of wisdom: ‘Don’t be in a hurry to condemn because he doesn’t do what you do or think as you think or as fast. There was a time when you didn’t know what you know today.’ Yes friends, none of us began our lives as wise as we now are. That’s because true wisdom comes with age and experience. So we don’t need to knock the young as much or as hard as we sometimes do, for hopefully they too will get wise with age and experience. 

Remember Jesus words: ‘Judge (condemn) not, that ye be not judged (condemned). 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) Oh my people, if our current, oh so quick to judge and judgemental world would only adopt that teaching eh! Unfortunately it doesn’t like that’s going to happen at any time soon, because we’re all so engrossed on judging each other; just look at the foolishness that’s going unhindered on the social media platforms nuh. Some of us with the biggest planks in our eyes are daring to judge those with mere specks in theirs!  (Matt.7:3-5) 

Now here’s the piece de resistance (smile): ‘Let go of yesterday. Let today be a new beginning and be the best that you can, and you’ll get to where God wants you to be.’ And we all know that as gospel truth because we serve a God of new beginnings, new chances and starting over as often as is necessary. That’s why Bruh Paul admitted to the church at Philippi: ‘Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended (reached where I want to be, the ultimate pinnacle): but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.’ (Phil. 3:13-14) 

Yes friends, Bruh Paul didn’t think he was a hot shot, although he could boast about many things, his religious credentials and past Christian achievements. As the scholars say: ‘In ever pursuing his goal to know Christ (v.10), he refuses to let past guilt pull him down, or to rest on past laurels. Either could spell spiritual disaster. Those things which are before refers to his goal of knowing Christ, with all that implies: experiencing His power and participating in His suffering, becoming more like Him in death (v.10), and experiencing the resurrected life (v.11).’ 

And so should we be evermore focused on what’s coming up and not what’s gone before. Hear the scholars: ‘3:14. The mark is the objective of verses 10 and 11 (i.e. knowing Christ). The prize is the joyful personal satisfaction of having attained it, as well as the divine commendation and reward to be granted in heaven for having reached this goal on earth. The high calling of God is the divine summons extended to the believer for salvation.’ 

Oh my people, my people, this Saturday morning I sincerely implore us to be wise and diligently seek that mark, that objective of knowing Christ and the power of His resurrection, so that we can all eventually receive the wonderful heavenly prize given to those who have received and accepted the divine summons of salvation! Now that’s surely a Bruh Paulian sentence! (smile) And we can then declare like Bruh Paul: ‘I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course (race), I have kept the faith.’ (2 Tim.4:7)  Much LOVE!

…Christians should always be looking forward to the ultimate prize…that of being with Christ in heaven…for eternity…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 10 January 2020 Proverbs 3:25.

10 Jan 2020 Leave a comment

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

Proverbs 3:25.    ​Be not afraid of sudden fear (terror), neither of the desolation of (trouble from) the wicked, when it cometh.
 
And then it was Friday, that day we so revere and look forward to, because it means we’re about to get a much needed break from work. Many of us, however, are today more concerned about the serious state of negative affairs in our world in this short space of ten days of the new year. The anger and concern in our world hasn’t been this high in a long while. What with the natural disasters of fires, famines and whatnot, we also have the heightened tensions caused by indiscriminate bombings and killings and heated words and arguments of imminent international war being thrown around by incompetent and corrupt leaders. 

Steups! Haven’t we had enough of war? Are we still so stupid and short sighted to think that war solves anything? We must be, since the warmongers are having a field day with rhetoric of unbelievable proportions! But friends, the long and short of the story is that most of us can’t do anything about the tenuous situations currently facing our world, so we have to stop the worrying. Remember, worrying fixes nothing, just causes things to get worse. If you can fix it, why worry about it, just fix it! And if you can’t fix it, then why worry about it eh? 

Our main solution to the problem is simply prayer; turning to God with sincere hearts minds bodies and souls. And what amazes me is that we’ve turned away so far from God, that with all the negative stuff happening, our religious leaders aren’t even thinking that it might possibly be all a wake up call from our dissatisfied God, and all He’s seeking is for us to return to His wonderful fold. It’s been documented in the Good Book all down through it’s history, so why should these perilous times be any different eh? 

Friends, I don’t know the answers either, but I do know that this ought to be a time of serious prayer and repentance because that is the only thing that can bring us back from the overhanging precipice of war and possible extinction on which we’re currently precipitously balancing! Anyway, it’s Friday and the workingman is just dying to have his say. So what say we let him eh? (smile) 

‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday oui! It wasn’t a bad week at work nuh, though the weather could have been more consistent; instead of one minute snow, one minute rain…yuh never know what to expect. Just look at all the snow we had fall yesterday. Today there’s hardly a trace of it; either washed away by the rain, or melted in the warmer temps. I guess that’s all about climate change. But don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining, for generally speaking, the less snow I have to encounter in my everyday life, the happier I am! 

And with the children back to school now, contented with all their toys and stuff, for the time being that is, the wife was able to get some much needed rest and do some stuff for herself. Brother, it’s so busy and draining being a homemaker these days, even with all the helpful tools that are supposed to make it easier! Don’t know how women long ago handled it nuh. We just got to be thankful for sensible, hardworking wives, Fridays and weekend yes!’ 

And all the men said a loud and grateful ‘Amen!’ (smile) Ah mih people, life might have been somewhat harder physically long ago, but it certainly wasn’t as stressful and busy like it is today. And one would think that with all the technological inventions etc. etc. we’d be able to slow down. But the truth is all those inventions are just making us become busier and want things in even shorter time periods. 

But for those of us who sincerely believe in and trust the Lord Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour, we don’t need to rush around like a chicken with it’s head cut off – have you ever seen that – (smile) we ought to be well grounded, calm and not anxious or fearful. And to help us do that, let’s give out with our Friday Chant nuh. 

‘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!’ Yes friends, ours is a more cautious though still amazingly more enjoyable life than that of the ordinary workingman. 

And you’ll notice that in his song he didn’t mention anything about the current turmoil in our world. That’s because a lot of the ordinary working people, don’t have the time to worry about such stuff, even though they might hear it on their televisions or radios or social media. Why? Because they’re too busy trying to make a half decent life in this crazy, dog-eat-dog world in which we now live! 

And I believe this passage from Proverbs will help us today, if we seriously embrace it. ‘The Lord by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens. By his knowledge the depths (deeps) are broken up, and the clouds drop down the dew. My son, let not them (wisdom, understanding, knowledge) depart from thine eyes; keep sound wisdom and discretion: 

So shall they be life unto thy soul, and grace (favour) to thy neck. Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely, and thy foot shall not stumble. When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid: yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet. Be not afraid of sudden fear (terror), neither of the desolation of (trouble from) the wicked, when it cometh. For the Lord shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken.’ (Prov. 3:19-26) 

Oh my people, as true believers, let us not fear in these troubling times, but instead stand strong and sincerely turn to our omnipotent God, Creator and wonderful Shepherd! That will certainly stand us in good stead when negative things come against us! Much LOVE!

…the most used words of Jesus…FEAR NOT…

​Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 October 2019 Nehemiah 1:7.

08 Oct 2019 Leave a comment

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

Nehemiah 1:7.  We have dealt (acted) very corruptly against thee, and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the judgements (ordinances), which thou commandedst thy servant Moses.

Greetings my people! It’s somewhat late, but the sun is shining brightly and the temp is somewhere up in the high twenties! Wow! It’s a bit cloudy though, so it’s obscuring the downtown and harbour scene somewhat… Ah friends, the ole fella’s in sunny Jamaica! Yeh, the land of wood and water! And ah know some of you jealous too, (smile) wondering how he could be travelling so much. But friends, no one was sorry for me when I never left good ole Canada for three sickly years, from March 2016-October 2018. No one was there when I lay in the lonely bed looking out at the planes flying by and wondering when, if ever, I’d be able to travel in one again! 

No one heard my sobs and cries to Almighty God asking what’s going on? Neither did they hear His rely of ‘Keep your peace my son! All in good time! Just trust me!’ And I did. Now He’s keeping the promise He made, enabling me to fly all over the world! So how can I not LOVE Him eh? He’s always done as He says…though not necessarily on my timetable! (smile) All praise and glory to our wonderful and faithful God my fellow saints in Christ, for He is indeed a keeper of His Word! 

But the real reason I’m in J.A. right now is to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the 1969 Graduating Class of the University of the West Indies, of which I am a member. That means I’m going to see some people I haven’t seen for fifty odd years! Can you believe it? I saw some of them when I was down here a year ago, and will most likely see them again, but there are many others I haven’t seen since 1969. That just brings back the good memories…and a few of the rough ones…that I experienced back then, when J.A. didn’t have as many problems as it now has, was a comparative paradise!  

And talking about problems, I’m having one here with my hitherto trustworthy mouse. Steups! The bloody thing not working. I thought it might have been the battery, went and bought two new ones at some exorbitant price, only to find out that the battery is not the problem. And since I’m not the fingers guy on the computer, I’m having a hard time doing some of the stuff I want to do, like highlighting stuff. Don’t laugh mih young daughter. But the ole fella’s plodding along nonetheless. And I know the Lord will help us to do a good job anyway…because that’s just the kind of helpful Deity He is! Bless His holy name! 

So what we writing about today eh? Let me open the Good Book and see what the Lord has in mind nuh. Soon come. And I’m back in less than a minute, chuckling too, for the Good Book opened at this rather appropriate verse of Nehemiah’s prayer: ‘We have dealt (acted) very corruptly against thee, and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the judgements (ordinances), which thou commandedst thy servant Moses.’ Now I believe we might have used that for a Bit just recently, I’m not sure, but even if we have, it’s still the Lord’s prerogative to tell us again, because it is still a most appropriate scripture for these evil and ungodly times! 

Oh friends, our world is so evil and ungodly nowadays that it just boggles the imagination! I don’t know if there’s ever been a generation that’s as bad as this one. Maybe it’s just that we have easier and faster communication these days, so we know about more stuff. But the same quick communication is itself causing all sorts of evil and ungodliness in our world! Without the social media and all the platforms that facilitate it, many of those who are pursuing evil now would not have been able to pursue it, especially so blatantly, recklessly and anonymously! 

Sometimes when I hear about some of the stuff that’s pervading social media, as well as the atrocities committed in many of our societies, by our own supposed leaders, especially those against women and innocent children, it just makes me want to hold mih head and bawl! How can we be so cruel and evil to our own people eh? I guess I must be just naïve yes. But I like me the way I am. And the sad part is that many who are committing these atrocities are calling themselves Christians too. What a crying shame! And even declaring that some of those awful deeds are being done in the name of Jesus! Steups! 

Ah Lord eh! It’s a good thing the Lord is still on His throne oui, looking down at things and taking notes until He’s ready to act. The old people say, ‘time longer than twine,’ and is true, but ‘even the longest rope does have an end.’ And I wouldn’t want to be around when the Lord reaches the end of His rope nuh because it will be hellfire and damnation for the wicked! And it’s very instructive to listen to the voice of Daniel in his prayer from so long ago, because the content of his words still resonate very loudly today. 

‘To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against him; Neither have we obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets.’ (And in our time, that includes Jesus.) ‘Yea, all Israel have transgressed thy law, even by departing, that they might not obey thy voice; therefore the curse is poured upon us, and the oath that is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, because we have sinned against him.’ (Dan.9:9-11) Oh my people, our sin profile today is much like the Israelites’ back then, way too high, and if we continue along the same sinful path, we will also pay the price for our ungodliness. 

And as Daniel writes: ‘As it is written in the law of Moses, all this evil (disaster) is come upon us: yet made we not our prayer before the Lord our God, that we might turn from our iniquities, and understand thy truth.’ (Dan.9:13) Yes my people, the Lord has given us an out from the calamity stored up for the wicked, but we have not, and apparently are not going to repent of our sinful ways and go back to obeying His commandments. But please, please remember these fateful words of Daniel: ‘Therefore hath the Lord watched upon the evil (kept the disaster), and brought it upon us: for the Lord our God is righteous in all his works which he doeth: for we obeyed not his voice.’ (Dan.9:14) 

Friends, God cannot, and will not tolerate sin, and if we continue to blatantly disobey God’s commandments, as we are currently doing, you think we’re going to get away Scot free? Not on your life! Remember what Samuel said to Saul: ‘Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken (listen) than the fat of rams.’ (1 Sam.15:22) Saul didn’t do what the Lord commanded him to do, so he lost the kingship. And remember too, what the Lord promoted Jesus to the highest name there is besides His…for OBEDIENCE! Nuff said! Much LOVE!

…sin can be forgiven…but only through repentance…belief in Jesus…and righteous living…

P.S. Certainly hopes this turns out good yes, cause I had a hell of a time writing it! (no smile)  Much LOVE!

Today’s Scrip-Bit 7 September 2019 Joshua 1:8.

07 Sep 2019 Leave a comment

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

Joshua 1:8.    ​This book of the law shall not depart out of (be continually in) thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
 

What a crying shame it is friends when one can’t lie abed late on a cloudy Saturday morning because the various aches and pains in your aching body won’t allow you to find a comfortable position in that place that’s supposed to be one of quiet peace and refreshing rest! Hn, hn! 

Yeh mih people, getting old is nice in many ways, but not so nice in others. The wisdom and experience one accumulates, plus the ability to say most of what you want and get away with it (smile) is marvellous, but I can’t say the same for the many debilitating effects age brings to one’s body. However, we can’t seem to have one without the other, so I’ll just say thank you for the good parts and just grin and bear the bad ones. And that’s enough complaining for this morning! (smile) 

Let’s see what quotes our friend Anselm sent us this week, as he sincerely aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And I like this first one: ‘There is strange comfort in knowing that no matter what happens today, the Sun will rise again tomorrow.’ Now is that ever so true! 

We all know that regardless of what today brings, tomorrow will show up right on schedule, because that’s the way our great God and Creator planned it! That means we can always have hope and faith that tomorrow, the new rising of the sun, will bring a different and better outcome to our circumstances. So please hang in there…and have hope for tomorrow! 

Now hear this one: ‘Try to find pleasure in the speed that you’re not used to. Changing the way you do routine things allows a new person to grow inside of you. But when all is said and done, you’re the one who must decide how you handle it.’ That’s somewhat complicated, but it does contain some truth. In this world we’re usually creatures of habit and comfort, and nothing’s wrong with that, because we can’t have excitement all the time. 

But the same old, same old routine does get boring and frustrating if we don’t occasionally add a li’l zing and zest to it. That’s why every so often we need to take a risk, do something new and/or different, get out of our comfort zone for a spell, take a different way home from work, eat at a new restaurant, so we can add a touch of spice to our humdrum, mundane lives. 

But having said that though, we have to be careful that we don’t change just for change sake, which is what so many of us are doing these days. We use words like ‘this is the twenty first century; this is 2019, the Old Testament doesn’t matter anymore, etc.’ insinuating that because we’ve reached a certain level of time and space and evolution that things must necessarily change. But please note the old saying, that the more things change, the more they remain the same. 

And that’s gospel truth friends! If you really check it out, most of the things we’re doing, and the reactions we’re showing to the various changes in our world, the same things have been going on for ages, possibly just on a different level. So please, especially in these explosive times of social media and technological revolution, don’t change just for change sake, or because others are doing it. The Good Book containing the Lord’s wise and precious Word must still be our guiding light! 

And I’d like to take the last two quotes as one, because they are closely intertwined. Hear them: ‘When you fail, that is when you get closer to success.’ ‘Success will be within your reach only when you start reaching out for it.’ And they are both full of awesome truth since you generally don’t have success unless you have first failed, and you can only have success if you reach out for it. 

But what do we mean by success eh? Is it how the world terms it; the accumulation of power and fame and money and worldly glory, or celebrity status? Or is it how Jesus describes it; serving the lost, the poor and downtrodden, LOVING our God with all our being, and LOVING our neighbours as ourselves, overcoming evil with good and going the second mile when it’s not necessary? 

Whichever path we choose though, the results will still be the same: we won’t always succeed the first time, or even the fourth and fifth, and we’ll never succeed if we don’t try, and that means try sincerely and wholeheartedly, give our all! Anyway, here’s the best path to any kind of success at all. Obviously it comes from the Good Book, God’s direct words of wisdom and warning to His servant Joshua when He made him leader of the Israelites after Moses’ death. 

‘This book of the law shall not depart out of (be continually in) thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.’ 

Oh mih people, that’s Success 101 right there! And it hasn’t changed one iota since the Lord said them to Joshua! That formula for success remains constant forever because it’s God’s Word and his Word doesn’t change! And here’s something I LOVE about our God, although I don’t always appreciate it in my dealings with Him. (smile) 

He doesn’t just tell you something and leave you floundering, He often drives it home with another suitable and well placed nail, to oftimes encourage us, like He did there with Joshua, continuing thus: ‘Have I not commanded thee? Be strong and of good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.’ (Josh.1:9) 

And that’s after telling him basically the same thing two verses before. But He knew that Joshua would need a lot of strength and courage to lead the wayward and stubborn Israelites and that was His way of encouraging Him. And He does the same with us friends! The Lord will NEVER leave us alone and ‘unencouraged’ when He knows that we definitely need encouragement! Please remember that! All we have to do is call on Him in sincerity and truth and He will answer appropriately. 

Now let’s end with Jesus’ wise and faithful words on the matter of success. ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt.6:33) No truer words were ever spoken friends! And if we’re wise, we’ll take them to heart and sincerely and diligently put them into action in our lives! Much LOVE!

…following Jesus and His righteous ways…is the ONLY path to true success…

 

 

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…

 

 

 

​

Today’s Scrip-Bit 27 July 2019 Proverbs 3:5.

27 Jul 2019 Leave a comment

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

Proverbs 3:5.    ​Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
 

Aye mih people, it’s a beautiful day in my neighbourhood! We’re alive…Glory to God! Yes, we’ve been granted another day on God’s great earth…Give Him thanks and praise for such generosity! And even better…the ole fella’s up early to write you encouraging words…and the icing on the cake is that my trusty desktop behaved perfectly this morning, no rebellion whatsoever. 

Wow! Would the Lord ever be mighty thankful if we could be that obedient! My spelling seems to be somewhat atrocious this morning though, for I made about five mistakes in that last sentence. (smile) And make no doubt about it, the evil one and his cronies are also up and about early, for I just received a phone call purporting to be from my Credit Card Company, warning me that they had stopped some unauthorized payment on my card and I should call such and such a number. 

I don’t know why I even answered the phone because I don’t usually answer numbers that I don’t know. But to be on the safe side, I did check out my Credit Card Company and they did not call me. Just goes to show we have to be on our p’s and q’s each moment of every day, because the master of deceit, falsehood and thievery is always on the lookout for a chance to creep into our souls and our business. 

Anyway, with our Lord and Saviour constantly riding shotgun with us, there’s no need to worry! Give Him some more thanks and praise, exalt His mighty name! And since it’s Saturday, let’s look at what words of wisdom our friend Anselm had to offer this week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. 

Hear this one: ‘People will always have an opinion, but you have to live life the way you want to.’ And that’s no lie, especially in these crazy and dangerous times of social media. But you indeed have to live your life the way you see it, though in line with the way our heavenly Father wants us to live our earthly lives. That is the supreme opinion to which you ought to pay constant and faithful attention. 

And then there’s this: ‘Success is a process that continues, not a status that you reach. If you are alive, there are lessons to be learned and things you can do.’ Ah mih people, in the first place success from the world’s viewpoint, is definitely not the same as God’s. But in both instances, we have to work towards that successful point, it doesn’t just happen, and once we’re alive, we are supposed to keep on learning, for that’s the whole purpose of being alive! (smile) 

What’s the purpose of being alive and not learning anything eh? None whatsoever! It’s ever so important to keep on learning, both what the phony, evil world is really about, and what God’s righteousness calls for. And the next quote highlights that in spades: ‘Saying good words to people will never go out of style. The truth is everybody likes encouragement; everybody likes somebody cheering them on.’ Now that we can all attest to! 

And it is the duty of Christians to cheer each other on, as well as non-believers! Cousin Sol says it thus: ‘A word fitly spoken (spoken at the right time) is like apples of gold in pictures (settings) of silver.’ (Prov.25:11) and the scholars explain: ’25:11. A timely and fitting word is precious and pleasing.’ And Jesus was all about encouragement, just read His words, and so should His followers be. 

But unfortunately there’s way more discouraging words being spoken in this confused and strife-filled world than encouraging ones, and it is the Christian’s job, to get out there and shine, shine, shine, bring light and encouragement to a dark and tumultuous humanity! As Jesus so desperately desires of us: ‘Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven’ (Matt.5:16) 

And this next quote gives some indication of how we’re doing, re maturing faith. ‘A good sign of how secure you are, is what it takes to “offend” you. The more secure you are, the less offended you get.’ And that’s gospel truth! The more secure we are in Jesus, the more it takes to get us offended. And brother, are we ever easily offended these days! 

But just look at Jesus’ example nuh. They said all kinds of rotten and blasphemous things about Him, but He went about His Father’s business nonetheless. He just let it all roll of like water off a duck’s back. He knew whom and whose He was, and His purpose here on earth, so He did not allow the naysayers to get Him off track with their evil words and deeds. And we’ll add this scripture here as a lagniappe. (smile) ‘Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God.’ (2 Cor. 3:5) Let’s remember that friends, it’s all about our dependence on God Almighty! 

Now hear this last quote: ‘As you keep your mind and heart focused in the right direction, approaching each day with faith and gratitude, I believe you will be empowered to live life to the fullest and enjoy the abundant life He has promised you.’ Yes my faithful brethren, Christ did come that we might have life, and have it more abundantly. (John 10:10b) But the important thing, as our quote says, is to be focused in the right direction. 

And what is the right direction, you ask? Well I believe that right direction is found in these wonderful and wise words of Cousin Sol. ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel (body), and marrow (strength) to thy bones. Honour the Lord with thy substance (possessions), and with the first fruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses (vats) shall burst out with new wine.’ (Prov.3:5-10) 

Oh my people, my people, no better direction can be found in all the world than those given there by Cousin Sol! Obviously the Lord inspired them, and if we’d just do those few but all-important things, our lives would be ever so wonderful! Not that we won’t have problems, because this world has natural problems coming out of its kazoo, but we’ll be able to prosper and stand strong in Christ despite them all. So please let’s take those words of Cousin Sol to heart this Saturday morning in July of 2019 nuh, so that our lives will manifest the Saviour to this lost and darkened world! Much LOVE!

…to the true believer…Jesus is our BE ALL…and our END ALL…our EVERYTHING…

 

 

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 23 July 2019 James 1:19.

23 Jul 2019 Leave a comment

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

James 1:19.    ​Wherefore my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:
 

And then it was Tuesday…Whatever happened to Monday eh – the day that we thought would kill us, that we’d never get through? Ah mih people, like all those other Mondays, which we thought would be so destructive to our psyche and body, it has gone the way of the dodo, spinning uselessly into the annals of History, no more to be seen again! 

Wow! What philosophical enlightenment! (smile) But here is something that we seemingly cannot, or just will not put into practice: ‘A Quiet Tongue!’ This from our One Year Book of Bible Promises, with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. I just could not pass it up because it’s so apropos to our loud and oh so talkative times! I’ve shared it before, but it’s one of those reminders that we need to hear again and again. 

Please pray with me: ‘Lord, a revealing fact Began to surface today: I talk more than I listen. I seem to be thoroughly convinced That my ideas My inspiring experiences My bits of wisdom Are exactly what all my friends need. Too often I break into conversations Confident that my enlightened insight Will solve the predicament – Whatever it is. Obviously I feel more comfortable When I’m expounding. 

But this morning at a Bible Study I cringed when I read Your command In the first chapter of James: “Don’t ever forget That it is best to listen much Speak little, and not become angry.” At first I wanted to run. But as the words kept battering away At my guilty heart I finally circled them with red ink. Now, Lord, please help me to obey them. Remind me daily, hourly That listening is a discipline and a discipline always costs. I know I must pay a price. The price for me Is a listening ear And a quiet tongue.’ 

Mama Mia! How true is that of so many of us, believers included! And the sad part is that the sudden surge in communication technology has made it even worse. It’s like a free for all out there now with the advent of social media and all its octopus-like tentacles, reaching into every aspect of modern day society and creating such a loud, ear–hurting noise that many of us have to run from it. Or we’d be wise to run from it. 

We talk so much that half the time we don’t even know or understand what we’re saying. But you can’t say that to anybody, because we all feel we’re so knowledgeable about whatever situation we choose to expound on. The truth is though, that most of us don’t know a blooming important thing about most of the things we choose to expound on! (smile) 

And we’d be so much better off if we’d just shut up for a while and listen, that’s listen attentively, rather than talk, than break into conversations that we know li’l if anything about. What a quiet and wonderful place our world would be if only Christians did that eh! And it’s not like that the Good Book has not commanded us to do so. But who listens to the Good Book nowadays eh, unless it’s something that’s convenient for us eh? 

And the Bible verse for our poem and our Bit for today is that of James’ awesome warning. ‘Wherefore my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not (does not produce) the righteousness of God.’ (James 1:19-20) And is that ever so true friends! 

Now hear these explanations from the scholars on those two verses. ‘1:19. This is a key verse because it expresses three topics that James develops later: hearing, verses 19-27; speaking, 3:1-12; and wrath, 4:1-12.’ That’s stuff we’d do well to read and put into practice! ‘1:20. Trials require silence and patience because talk inflames anger, and anger inflames talk. Anger also distracts from listening to God.’ 

You can’t dispute that friends. But who listens nowadays eh? Not too many of us, since we all want to be the focus of everybody else’s attention! But hear these wise words from Cousin Sol nuh: ‘In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise.’ (Prov.10:19) Gospel truth that! The more we talk the more chance we have of committing sin. 

And then there’s this: ‘He that hath knowledge spareth his words: and a man of understanding is of an excellent (calm) spirit. Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace (keeps silent) is counted (considered) wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.’ (Prov.17:27-28) 

Oh mih breddren, mih breddren, what wonderful words of wisdom and advice from the supposedly wisest man that ever lived; Cousin Sol! Please, please, let’s wake up and take it nuh, because we’re talking ourselves into more and more difficulties and disasters every day. Just listen to the explosive rhetoric that’s being passed back and forth by our world leaders today nuh; it’s nothing but ammunition for anger, strife and war, of which we already have more than enough in this troubled world. 

So I implore us to not heighten the ammunition level, but rather lower it, by talking less and listening more. And now that we’ve taken all of that o heart, written it indelibly in our souls, bodies and minds, (smile) let’s go home declaring (steups, wrong again!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the world know in no uncertain terms, who and whose we are. 

In strong voice with a 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 now it’s time for us to go out and share that unconditional, undying LOVE and friendship of Jesus with others, as He so greatly desires of us! Much LOVE!

…set a watch (guard), O Lord…before my mouth…keep (watch over) the door of my lips… (Ps.141:3)

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 20 July 2019 Matthew 10:22.

20 Jul 2019 Leave a comment

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

Matthew 10:22.    ​And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.
 

Ah friends, Saturday, the day of all days! (smile) What’s on the agenda for today eh? For most of us it’s sleeping in, then a lazy day on the couch, or fun and games, barbecuing and enjoying the summer weather. For others though it can mean a busy day at home; cleaning and washing and replenishing groceries and stuff; possibly harder work than what you get paid to do during the week. (smile) 

But that’s how life goes, and once you have Jesus walking in you and with you, then you don’t have to worry about getting whatever job it is done. Oh yes, it might be somewhat difficult, but you’re assured that with Jesus’ help, you will get it done successfully! All praise and glory to our great and wonderful God for the help He gives to us frail and mortal humans! 

And since it’s Saturday, let’s see what gems of wisdom our friend Anselm sent us this week nuh, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. Hear this one: ‘Life is too short to waste in the company of those who can’t wait to put you down. Let them say what they want. Their opinions aren’t your problem. Keep doing good, as you’ve always done. No matter what they do or say, don’t doubt who you are and what you’re doing.’ 

That’s wise advice friends! In this current mish-mash world, people are only too glad to put you down once you’re trying to improve yourself and your situation. Possibly because of jealousy, or their own laziness, they don’t want you to rise above them. But once you’re sure of who and whose you are, that you belong to Jesus, for you were bought with a high price, that of His precious blood, then you can ignore all the naysayers and go about Jesus’ business with confidence. 

And then there’s this: ‘Being quiet and calm doesn’t mean you’re weak. Such people show strength that’s under control. The most intelligent people know when to speak, know when to listen, and know when to be quiet.’ Oh what truth my brethren!

But unfortunately, with the current burst of technology that makes communication so easy, everyone has an opinion on everything and are not bashful to share it, thus the great explosion of social media and the large amount of nonsense, endless talking, false information, lies and deceit they provoke. 

Now here’s a gem: ‘You’ve been in situations where you thought you’d never make it out, but you did. You’ve lived through it, you’ve learned from it and you survived. So whatever it is that you’re currently going through right now, you can and will get through it if you are determined to push thru.’ 

Yes my faithful brethren. We’ve lived through numerous times of adversity and trouble, but with the Lord’s help we got through them all, stronger and more mature. So why worry about whatever tough situation you’re experiencing now eh? It’s a problem too many Christians face; not turning back and remembering what the Lord brought us through, and realizing and believing that if He’s done it a million times already, He’ll do it a zillion times in the future, for that’s His awesome, unbreakable and ever-faithful promise. 

And I particularly like the last two quotes, which fit together quite nicely. The first says: ‘People buy into the leader before they buy into the vision.’ That’s an undeniable fact! That’s possibly because of the leader’s charisma or charm, or some sense of trust and reliability that they exude. There’s no better example of that than Jesus. Look at how He chose His first four disciples: 

‘And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers (fishermen). And he saith unto them, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. And they straightway left their nets and followed him.

And going on from thence, he saw two other brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother in a ship with Zebedee their father mending their nets; and he called them. And they immediately left the ship and their father, and followed him.’ (Matt.4:18-22) 

Ah mih people, those fishermen must have seen something in Jesus to just drop their livelihood and follow him, the last two leaving their poor father to manage on His own. And Jesus called Matthew the same way. Matthew was sitting at his tax office, adding up his money, when Jesus passed by and said to him, ‘Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.’ (Matt.9:9) 

Now who in their right mind would give up the lucrative position that the tax man held back in those olden times to follow some itinerant preacher eh, and more importantly why? But Matthew did it, so he must have seen something in Jesus or felt some abnormal pull to just give up his lucrative tax job to become a fisher of men. 

Now the last quote says: ‘Leadership is not wielding authority — it’s empowering people.’ And that’s exactly how a true leader ought to operate. If you’re secure in yourself and your authority and power, then there’s no need to blatantly wield said power. What you need to do is raise up your followers so that they too can embrace your vision and help you bring it to fruition. 

And again, Jesus is the best example of empowering leadership. He knew who He was, and what power He had, and realized that He could not proselytize the whole world on His own, so He brought together the twelve most unlikely candidates to help Him, and over a three year period He taught them and empowered them, so that they could go out and do His work after He was gone. 

I like how He told them: ‘Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless (innocent) as doves.’  (Matt.10:16) Imagine telling your workers that nowadays nuh! I doubt you’d have too many after that. And that did happen to Jesus. When some of them saw how difficult the task was, they simply quit. 

Furthermore, He warned them thus: ‘And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.’ Oh friends, those are indeed tough statements to hear and bear, and they still pertain to us today. But please note that the true disciples bought into Jesus’ vision and did withstand all the trials and tribulations they encountered to spread His Word. 

And they did such a wonderful job, that two thousand years later, despite all sorts of problems, that magnificent and true Word has come down to us, with all the same provisos and tough conditions.

Yes friends, the baton, the glowing torch of Christ’s salvation, has now been passed to us, to keep it burning, until we pass it on to the next generation. Please, I implore us, don’t let it be said that that eternal torch was extinguished on our watch! That would be such a dismal stain on our report card. Let’s stand strong and endure to the end! Much LOVE!

…to be eligible for a prize…one must finish the race…

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 15 June 2019 2 Corinthians 5:17.

15 Jun 2019 Leave a comment

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

2 Corinthians 5:17.      ​Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
 

Saturday, O Saturday, how I do LOVE thee…even though I don’t get to sleep in as late as I would like to! (smile) Yes, for many of us Saturday is simply a day to sleep in as late as possible, after five early morning risings to join the rat race called going to work. But unfortunately some of us do have work to get up and do, even on a Saturday, like writing the Bit, so we don’t have that luxury. 

Aye mih big daughter, are you going to write me and sigh again, that I’m complaining? (smile) Brother! The other day when I spoke about how inconvenient it was going to the hospital everyday for the radiation therapy, the lady accused me of complaining! But to each his own yes. As the song says, ‘only he who feels it knows it.’ Still LOVES you a whole lot though mih first born! (mucho hugs & kisses) 

Anyway, enough pussyfooting, it’s Saturday and our friend Anselm has sent us a whole slate of quotes this past week, as he sincerely aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And the first one says: ‘If you accept the expectations of others, especially negative ones, then you never will change the outcome.’ And unfortunately, that’s no lie! If you allow the expectations of others to rule your life, then it will always turn out their way, and not yours. Neither can you do the same thing all the time and expect a different result. 

Then there’s this: ‘Being positive is like going up a mountain. Being negative is like sliding down a hill. A lot of times, people want to take the easy way out, because it’s basically what they’ve understood throughout their lives.’ Yes, if you want to do something right, you have to expend time and energy, as if you’re indeed climbing a mountain. It just doesn’t happen on a lazy, negative slide downhill. 

And is our current society ever famous for taking the easy way out! Everything we do these days is about how fast and easily we can do it. ‘Now for now’ is our motto! Patience, or taking our time and putting some blood and sweat into our activities has fled from our society. So it’s not surprising that that’s all this current generation knows. 

Therefore we have to: ‘Watch out for the joy-stealers: gossip, criticism, complaining, faultfinding, and a negative, judgmental attitude.’ Especially in these current strife-filled times, for those are negative actions that are very persuasive and prevalent today! What with all the t.v shows that only feature resentment, deceit and strife! And when they are added to the sewer that’s called the social media, where negativity, falsehood and utter nonsense proliferate, what else can you expect of our society eh? 

Now listen to this quote: ‘For a really long time, I thought being different was a negative thing. But as I grew older, I started to realize we were all born to stand out; nobody is born to blend in.’ And that’s the living truth my people! Why do you think the Lord made each of us with things like different fingerprints, and that no one in this entire world is exactly the same as anyone else eh? Because He wanted us to be individuals first and foremost, not clones. 

And He also had a special and separate plan for each person He created. And that’s why, as believers, as His followers, Jesus admonished us to be the salt of the earth, and not to hide our lights under a bushel, otherwise we’d be wasting the Father’s talents and purposes that He’s placed inside each of us. He didn’t just want His followers to blend in with the crowd, but to stand out, loud and proud! 

And this last quote is a very interesting one: ‘One of the lessons that I grew up with was to always stay true to yourself and never let what somebody else says distract you from your goals. And so when I hear about negative and false attacks, I really don’t invest any energy in them, because I know who I am.’ 

Now that’s wisdom of much magnitude anyhow you cut it! But since this is a Christian Blog, (smile) then we ought to talk about that in Christian terms. I don’t know if the author of the quote meant it that way or not, but we can only be strong in who we are if we first know and then constantly remember who we are in Christ Jesus, because He is the ONE who gives us all that we need to live this life being true to ourselves and pursuing our God-given goals! 

And the first thing we need to know is as Bruh Paul said to the Corinthians: ‘Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.’ Oh friends, is it ever important that we see and think differently when we come to Jesus! We are a new creation, and therefore need to look at the world and the things of Christ in a new and different way. 

We must put aside our old habits and pick up new ones that involve Christ and His desire for our lives. We need to sincerely believe that ‘I can do ALL things through Christ who strengtheneth me.’ (Phil.4:13) As well as ‘But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.’ (Phil.4:19) 

Yes my brethren, those are two foundational scriptures that a believer must have written indelibly in his or her heart, soul body and mind, else he or she will not be able to function wisely as an ambassador for Christ and enjoy the abundance of life He died to give us! 

And one last thing that Bruh Paul highlighted to the church at Rome: ‘For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; the Jew first, and also to the Greek.’ (Rom.1:16) Oh my people, my people, if it’s one thing we must NEVER do is be ashamed of Christ and His saving gospel! It doesn’t make sense to claim you are a Christian then be ashamed to acknowledge the One and the actions that make you who and what you are! 

And Jesus said it very clearly: ‘Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.’ (John 10:33-34) 

So basically when we know who we are in Christ, we must believe that He will help us to do everything He calls us to do; He will also provide all that we need, if we seek Him earnestly, and we can’t ever be ashamed of Him and deny Him in public, as so many supposed believers do, else He will do the same to us in His Father’s heavenly court. So there it is in a nutshell! It’s all up to us now! Much LOVE!

…only in Christ…can we ever become…what we were created to become…

P.S. Yes, it’s long and late, but chocked full of useful info! (smile) Much LOVE! 

 

Previous Older Entries Next Newer Entries