Psalm 19:14. Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength (rock), and my redeemer.
Oh Friends, it’s been a while now since I reminded us of our Scrip-Bit motto, but I was guided to share it this Holy Thursday morning. It’s a simple but truthful and compelling motto: ‘LOVE YOUR GOD – LIVE YOUR FAITH – SPREAD HIS WORD!’
Nothing can be simpler and more straightforward than that my people! And it’s all based on Jesus’ commands. The first of which is: ‘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.22:37-38)
So above all else, we need to truly LOVE OUR GOD!
Then Jesus desired us to live out our faith when He declared that we should not hide our lights, our talents, under a bushel, a basket or lampshade, but to be the bright and shining lights of the world, the salt of the earth, worthy examples for all to see and emulate. (Matt.5:13-16)
And finally, He commanded us to spread His Word in the Great Commission: ‘Go ye therefore, and teach (make disciples of) all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.’ (Matt.28:19-20)
So Friends, we can surely see that if we sincerely and diligently do those three things, we are very much in obedience to Jesus’ desires, and walking steadfastly in His will!
And that’s all we’re trying to establish with the Scrip-Bit; to keep us focused on the Word and Will of God in our earthly lives. But such is the power of the enemy and our own natural sinfulness and weakness, that we need constant reminders to stay on the tried and true, straight and narrow path that leads to heaven and our Father, our Creator.
And that’s exactly what our Bit is trying to establish: ‘Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength (rock), and my redeemer.’
Yes my people, we certainly need to let good, positive thoughts and desires develop in our hearts, if our words are to be godly and righteous. We should not be cursing, but rather blessing each other. For how can we curse a man made in God’s image, and then declare we LOVE God eh? That’s not possible my brethren.
Anyway, turning back to our Bit, yesterday we looked at a couple scriptures that dealt with the meditation of our hearts. Today we’ll check out some that depict the Lord as our strength and our redeemer. And obviously we’ll begin with words from Bruh David, (smile) taken from Psalm 31.
He begins it with a wonderful acclamation of faith: ‘In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust (take refuge); let me never be ashamed: deliver me in thy righteousness. Bow down thine ear to me; deliver me speedily: be thou my strong rock (of refuge), for a house of defence (fortress) to save me.
For thou art my rock and my fortress; therefore for thy name’s sake lead me, and guide me. Pull me out of the net that they have laid privily (secretly) for me: for thou art my strength. In to thine hand I commit my spirit: thou hast redeemed me, O Lord God of truth.’ (Ps.31:1-5)
Oh my people, we couldn’t ask for a better and more convincing example of trust and faith in Almighty God!
Meanwhile, Jeremiah declares it in full voice in his prophecy against Babylon. ‘Thus saith the Lord of hosts; The children of Israel and the children of Judah were oppressed together: and all that took them captive held them fast; they refused to let them go. Their Redeemer is strong; the Lord of hosts is his name: he shall thoroughly plead their cause (case), that he may give rest to the land, and disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon.’ (Jer.50:33-34)
The Lord of hosts is our Redeemer, Friends – none but the Lord of hosts!
And if you don’t believe Jeremiah, then listen to Isaiah, who states it loudly, clearly and proudly in Chapter 47 – Judgement on Babylon. ‘As for our redeemer, the Lord of hosts is his name, the Holy One of Israel.’ (Is.47:4)
There’s definitely no doubting there my people, of whom the Redeemer is! The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is the Great Redeemer of His people Israel!
Let’s keep that in mind my fellow believers. Let’s write it indelibly in our hearts, souls and minds this Holy Thursday morning, as we keep prayerful vigil with Jesus Christ in His passion, His agony, contemplating His abominable fate of going to the cross of Calvary tomorrow, to redeem not only Israel, but the whole world, both Jews and Gentiles, through the most imaginative and daring plan ever executed in man’s history!
It was by no means an easy task, but Jesus completed it without complaining. So please, my fellow believers, let’s fully appreciate our Lord and Saviour’s selfless sacrifice on our behalf, and be truly grateful. For that’s nothing but heavenly wisdom! Much LOVE!
…oh what an awesome and magnanimous God we serve…One who selflessly and graciously redeems His sinful people from their heinous sins…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 12 April 2014 Psalm 66:19
12 Apr 2014 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a blaze of glory, all is well with my soul, almighty god, anger, anxiety, benefits of prayer, call for the church elders, Calvary's cross, Christ-like character, Christians, communicating with God, confidence, crucifixion, disservice, don't hang our heads and cry, don't lose confidence in God, Elijah, Everly Brothers, faith, faithful leader, fervent prayer, giver of all good things, God has heard my prayer, God hears and answers prayer, God loved us, God's great earth, good morning, he aven gave rain, heavenly fountain, in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ, Jesus died on the cross for us, joyful shout, lift up our hearts and heads, LOVE, negative forces, negative thing, negativity, pass through the fire, Praise be to god, prayer, prayer of faith, put aside fear, reconciled to God, reconciliation, refined, resentment, resurrection, righteous man, sacrifice, sacrificial death, saviour, saviour jesus, sinful life, sing psalms, sinless life, sins, sub-par lives, testimony, tests, the earth brought forth fruit, the power of prayer, Tom Dooley, trials, tribulations, troubling our tender souls, trust, worry
Psalm 66:19. But verily God hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayer.
Good morning, good morning! Yes Friends, we’re wishing you a good morning and a wonderful day on God’s great earth!
And although life might not be all that we want or expect, it sure beats anything else that we currently know. So let’s put aside the fear, the worry, the anxiety, the anger, resentment or whatever other negative thing is troubling our tender souls.
Remember that God is always working on, in and for us, trying to make us better people, more Christ-like in character and that includes all sorts of testing, trials, tribulations and being passed through the fire so that we can be refined and brought to the state that He’s prepared for us.
Wow! What a speech! (smile) But it’s all true. So this Saturday morning, regardless of whatever is wrong, let’s not get down on ourselves. Let’s not lose confidence in Almighty God, who LOVED us so much that He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die for us on the cross at Calvary, so that we could be brought back into His ever-loving fold, reconciled to Him.
That, my Friends, is the greatest gift that mankind has ever been given, and it’s set to all play out in the coming week, Holy Week, beginning with Christ’s crucifixion and ending in a blaze of glory with His resurrection!
And all God’s people gave a joyful shout of ‘Praise be to Almighty God, the giver of all good things to His chosen people!’
So let’s not hang our heads down like Tom Dooley and cry, (smile) – the old Everly Brothers song of the same name – but let’s lift up our heads and hearts proudly, with confidence, faith and trust in our faithful leader and Saviour Jesus Christ because that’s why He sacrificed His sinless life for our sinful ones. If we just give in to the negative forces and circumstances around us, then we’ll be doing Him a great disservice, making a mockery of His sacrificial death.
Right now is possibly the best time of year to be a Christian, just before Easter, when Jesus turned the whole world upside down with His wondrous doings! It’s a real confidence builder and booster! So sit up, look up, put a smile in your heart and on your face, and take pride in being a child of the ONE and ONLY TRUE GOD, Creator of the universe and all therein!
And in this calamitous and ungodly world, we need to get even closer to God than we currently are. That means going to Him in prayer, the most effective way of communicating with Him. And it still surprises me that many Christians don’t truly believe or understand the power of prayer! That’s why, as I said a couple of days ago, so many supposed Christians still lead sub-par lives. That’s why we have been inspired to write these messages on the positive power of prayer.
And our Bit is a wonderful example of the workings of prayer in a Christian’s life. The psalmist showed no doubt or hesitation when he declared: ‘But verily God hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayer.’
Yes my brethren, God does hear and answer our sincere prayers! And today we’ll share one unbroken passage of scripture which encapsulates all that prayer is and does.
Listen to James enunciate on the benefits of prayer. ‘Is any among you afflicted (suffering)? let him pray. Is any merry (cheerful) let him sing psalms. Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.
And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, (the prayer produced by that faith will heal), and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults (trespasses) one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual (effective) fervent prayer (supplication) of a righteous man availeth much.
Elijah was a man subject to like passions as we are (with a nature like ours), and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth (land) by the space of (for) three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.’ (James 5:13-18)
What a testimony for prayer my people! And I’ll add my own small testimony here. Before I began writing the Bit, I was feeling lousy both emotionally and physically, and knew I couldn’t write the Bit in that condition, so I read some uplifting stuff and floated some prayers up to heaven asking for strength and guidance to write a good Bit.
And Friends, though I expected a positive response, I was truly surprised when I began writing and everything just flowed like water from a fountain – a heavenly fountain that is. I didn’t even need to do a rough draft, as I do most of the time.
Now that couldn’t have been just my natural powers. And though I’m still feeling the effects of the cold, Friends, I’m here, and very happy to tell you, that all is now well with my soul! (smile) Please believe in prayer, for it does work wonders in a believer’s life! Much LOVE!
…to pray…to pray…and yet to pray…that is the only way…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 7 April 2014 Psalm 66:19
07 Apr 2014 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: aura of love, battle lines, blessings, calamity, confidence, enemy, enthusiasm, evil, faith, glorious kingdom, God has heard my prayer, God's judgement, gospel truth, have mercy on me, heavenly hosts, holy spirit, hope, humble servants, Jesus Christ, Jesus is waiting, jobs, joy, justice, justification, keeping lives and families together, lead and guide, lies, LOVE, loving kindness, marching as to war, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, Onward Christian soldiers, Orion, peace, Pleiades, prayer is of the utmost importance, raise our voices in song, rejuvenation of spirit, repentance, righteousness., seek the Lord in prayer, serve a useful purpose, shadow of death, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, sure conquerors, surrender, the cross of Jesus, the Lord is my light and salvation, the voice of my prayer, thoughts of peace, trust, truth, ungodly world, weary souls, weekend, well rested, wisdom, without faith it is impossible to please God
Psalm 66:19. But verily God hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayer.
Awright mih people, the inevitable Monday has rolled around once more! So let’s get a move on nuh. You should be well rested and ready after the weekend.
There’s no time to dilly dally, for the battle lines have already been drawn and Jesus is there waiting for us, astride that magnificent white stallion, who is impatiently tossing his head, pawing the ground, snorting and exhaling big gusts of hot, smoky air.
So to get us ready for battle, let’s move right into our Monday Morning Battle Hymn. As one great choir now, let’s raise our heads, hands, hearts and voices heavenward, as we burst out in song this bright spring morning.
‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Marvellous, mih breddren! That was absolutely marvellous! Once again we had the heavenly hosts all standing and rocking – that includes Jesus and the Father. (smile) So with our engines all revved up, let’s get out into the wicked world that anxiously awaits our coming, and with our great leader Jesus Christ in the forefront, let’s battle the enemy to a standstill!
Wow! As the old hymn directs and encourages: ‘Onward Christian soldiers, marching as to war, with the cross of Jesus, going on before!’
Ah Friends, the enthusiasm is catching! It’s certainly caught me, as I’m smiling and chucking, trying to suppress a cough that doesn’t want to be suppressed.
Now here is our Bit, which gives justification to our Monday Morning Battle Hymn. ‘But verily God hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayer.’
Yeh Friends, the Lord has certainly heard our prayer for strength and guidance this first day of the new work week. And please remember that prayer is of the utmost importance in a believer’s life, for it is our best and fastest method of communicating with our wonderful Creator!
And today we’ll check out a few scriptures where our Creator purposely advised us to seek Him out in prayer. So here goes. And we’ll begin with the words of Bruh David from Psalm 27; the Lord is my light and my salvation.
And no Friends, that is not a contrived situation. (smile) This time it has nothing to do with my favouritism of Bruh David. I’m putting the scriptures in sequence, and Bruh David just happens to come first.
And in Psalm 27, he solemnly declares: ‘Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me. When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek.’ (Ps.27:7-8)
And that’s the proper response my people! But sadly, many of us say it, but don’t put it into action, and thus miss out, foolishly deprive ourselves of many of the blessings the Lord has stored up for us.
Then in Jeremiah, our awesome God, LOVINGLY promises: ‘For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil (calamity), to give you an expected end (a future and a hope). Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto (listen to) you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.’ (Jer.29:11-13)
Yes Friends, prayer is necessary to find God! And most importantly, we need to do it diligently, sincerely, with all our heart, soul and mind.
Now listen to Amos, in his call to Israel for repentance. He uncompromisingly proclaims: ‘For thus saith the Lord unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live: But seek not Bethel, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beer-sheba: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nought (nothing).
Seek the Lord, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it in Bethel. Ye who turn judgement (justice) to wormwood, and leave off (abandon) righteousness in the earth, seek him that maketh the seven stars (the Pleiades) and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with (as) night: that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The Lord is his name.’ (Amos 5:4-8)
Oh my fellow believers, the Lord’s message could not be any clearer and simpler than that! It is essential that we seek Him, especially through prayer!
Now here are a few comments from the scholars: ‘5:4-7: Three times the invitation, Seek ye me, and ye shall live, is given (vv.4,6,14). Though God’s judgement is imminent, it can be avoided, or at least postponed, by seeking the Lord. The only hope is to seek the Lord in true repentance and thus avoid the judgement of God.’
Oh my people, that speaks right to our current situation. We definitely need to seek the Lord God Jehovah in true repentance, if we want our society to improve in righteousness.
And please remember that prayer doesn’t always have to be a formal, bowing and scraping ceremony. It can be just a friendly chat with our Creator as we mosey on through our day.
So please don’t be afraid to engage the Lord in conversation, at any time and place, for He takes great delight when His children come to Him in any kind of prayer, once it is sincere. Much LOVE!
…But without faith…it is impossible to please God…for he that cometh to God…must believe that he is…and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him… (Heb.11:6)
P.S. My humble apologies Friends, but between Outlook’s messing with my writing and my unhealthy self, we’re way behind. But better late then never though. (smile) Much LOVE!
Today’s Scrip-Bit 2 April 2014 Proverbs 3:23
02 Apr 2014 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: all the love in your heart, assurances, be not afraid, benefits of following Jesus, Christ, Christ experience, Christ is always with us, clouds, confidence, Cousin Sol, depart from your eyes, desolation, dew, different levels of maturity, discretion, elementary school, embrace Jesus, encouraging, everlasting, everlasting truth, fail tests, failures, faith, favour, fear, focused, focused on Jesus, followers of Jesus, following Christ is ongoing, for His name's sake, forgiveness, glory hallelujah, God's LOVING-kindness, goodness, grace, healing, helping, high school, hope, immature, interesting, Jesus Christ, Jesus will embrace you, journey with Christ, joy, keep on having hope, kindergarten, knowledge, life to thy soul, lifelong journey, like Jesus Christ, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, loving, maturation, mature, maturity, mercy, most awesome expereinces, motivation, never ending experience, not stumble, not to give up, paths of righteousness, personal experience, promises, refuse to accept Jesus, repeat tests, right with Jesus, sleep shall be sweet, something new to learn, sound wisdom, strength, successes, terror, testify, Thank you Jesus, the Lord shall be thy confidence, the path that Jesus trod, through to eternity, trouble, trust, truth, turn to Jesus, unconditional LOVE, understanding, university, walk safely, wisdom, works in progress
Proverbs 3:23. Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely, and thy foot shall not stumble.
Well hello there mih lovelies! (smile) What have you all got to say for yourselves this blessed Thursday morning in early April 2014 eh? Whatever it is, I do hope it abounds with LOVE, joy hope, faith, mercy, grace and forgiveness, as Jesus desires of His followers.
Now, as I was coming downstairs a short while ago, I began wondering what subject we could preamble with, as we perambulated through life today. (smile) And the Lord, in His wisdom and LOVING-kindness, put this idea in my mind.
You know how we like to talk about things being works in progress? Well how many of us realize that we too are works in progress eh? We are works in progress on the lifelong journey to be like Jesus Christ.
The interesting thing though is that we are all at different stages of completion… Oh, I believe completion might be the wrong word there, because as long as we are alive, we can never be completed in Christ. I guess the better word might be maturity, or even maturation.
Yes my fellow believers, we’re all at different stages or levels of maturity in Christ. It’s just like school. Some of us are in Kindergarten, or Elementary School level, while others have graduated from High School, and moved on to University. It all depends on when we began our journey with Christ and how much effort we’ve put into it.
Again, it’s just like school. Sometimes we fail tests and have to repeat them, or we just don’t put in enough effort, haven’t applied ourselves sufficiently and have to repeat the whole year in the same class.
But the important thing my fellow believers, is that no matter how old or young, mature or immature we are in Christ, there is always something new for us to learn and experience each and every day. That’s because following Christ is an ongoing, never ending experience, right through to eternity!
And the real beauty of the whole Christ experience Friends, is that Christ is ALWAYS with us! Regardless of our failures and successes, Jesus is ALWAYS there, healing, helping, LOVING, encouraging us not to give up, to keep on having hope, courage, faith, strength and trust in Him.
Oh Friends, what a wonderful Lord and Saviour we have in Jesus Christ!
The unfortunate part though is that those who refuse to accept Him and work with Him to come maturity, are missing the most awesome experience(s) this life has to offer!
And I testify to this from personal experience my brethren, because everyday something happens to keep me focused on Jesus. Be it good or bad, whatever it is, it always brings me right back to Jesus. And as I keep saying, it’s not always easy following Jesus, but it surely is always interesting!
So if you want to have the most interesting life available on this great planet earth, then TURN TO JESUS, embrace Him with all the LOVE your heart can produce, and He will in turn, embrace you with His everlasting, unconditional LOVE, and lead you in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.
And all God’s children shouted a joyful; ‘Thank You Jesus! We LOVE You, and praise Your Holy Name! Amen!’
Now my brethren, hear these wise words of Cousin Sol on the subject: ‘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 depart from thine eyes: keep sound wisdom and discretion: So shall they be life unto thy soul, and grace (favour) to thy neck. (Prov.3:19-22)
Words of everlasting truth, my brethren! And our Bit, smoothly and strongly continues Cousin Sol’s wisdom. ‘Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely, and thy foot shall not stumble.’
And all God’s people joyfully shouted: ‘Glory Hallelujah! Praise the Lord for His overwhelming and undeserving goodness to the children of men!’ That’s for sure mih people!
And that’s not all. Cousin Sol continues to lay down the wonderful benefits of following Jesus. ‘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.3:24-26)
Oh Friends, oh Friends, what blessed and sincere promises and assurances! But they only accrue to us when we sincerely and faithfully try to tread the path that Jesus trod, and we truly aspire to emulate Him. We will never come up to His excellence, but it’s all in the motivation Friends, it all depends on what truly is in our hearts.
So please, let’s try and make our hearts, minds and souls right with Jesus TODAY, so that we can begin to enjoy more of His wonderful blessings. That’s wisdom at its zenith! Much LOVE!
…to know, know, know Him…is to LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Him…
P.S. Oh mih people, sorry for the Bit being so late, but Internet Explorer and /or Outlook decided they were going to make changes they thought were better, but which screwed up my writing process. And unfortunately when I tried to fix it, I screwed it up even more and had to go to a different server.
So the whole process took much longer than necessary. Yuh see what I’ve said above is true. Everyday with Jesus brings some new challenge. But with His help I got through it with only a few deleted expletives. (smile) Much LOVE!
Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 March 2014 Psalm 31:1
24 Mar 2014 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: ailments, ashamed, aura of love, Babylon, Beelzebub, blessings, bow down, Bruh David, character, cheer in our hearts, Christ died for the ungodly, confidence, cry of anguish, cry out to God, deny, enemies, enthusiasm, experience, faith, faithfully, faithfulness, fear, fellow believers, fellowship, forgiveness, forsaking, glory, harmoniously, holy spirit, hope, humble servants, invincible, Israel, Jesus Christ, justification, living truth, LOVE of God, loving kindness, moaning and groaning, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, Oh Lord God Almighty, omnipotent god, patience, perseverance, promise, Psalm 22, rejuvenation of spirit, renewed vitality, righteous man, righteousness., sincere faith, sinners, slave for Massa, song of praise, spiritual armour, spring, steadfast faith, surrender our all, take refuge, take the bull by the horns, tribulations, trust, ungodly world, weary souls, worthwhile inroads
Psalm 31:1. In thee O Lord, do I put my trust (take refuge); let me never be ashamed: deliver me in thy righteousness.
Oh Friends, at long last spring has finally sprung in the northern climes! But sadly, that’s only on the calendar, not in reality. Last Thursday, March 20, was the first official day of spring and there were a couple of half-decent days where the weather was above freezing – but just barely though. Now it’s gone back to minus figures.
But what to do eh? Nothing but grin and bear it, especially on this Monday morning… Oh yes mih people, it is Monday! Sorry, I forgot to inform you of that most important situation. (smile) But I’m only human and cannot remember everything.
And you know if it’s Monday, then you have to get up and go out to slave for massa in this new Babylon, so you can earn a few pennies to keep life and limbs together. So let’s stop all the moaning and groaning and just get with the programme, since there’s nothing much we can do about it.
And as always, we have our Monday Morning Battle Hymn to give us strength, to raise our faith and get the adrenalin flowing. So let’s put a smile on our faces, some cheer in our hearts and sing loudly, proudly and harmoniously.
All together now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Now that wasn’t so hard was it? So let’s do our do, then get out into the evil world that surrounds us and give those followers of Beelzebub, heck; kill them with LOVING-kindness, as Jesus desires of us. (smile)
Oh Friends, on a serious note though, the days are indeed getting harder and rougher, and many of us are losing hope. But that is not a real option, for we have an omnipotent and most magnanimous God in whom we can put our utmost trust.
As Bruh David so faithfully declared in our Bit long ago, when he cried out in anguish to the God of our fathers: ‘In thee O Lord, do I put my trust (take refuge); let me never be ashamed: deliver me in thy righteousness.’
And we saw yesterday, as we went through the psalm, how God faithfully delivered him from his enemies, his physical and emotional ailments. Now why wouldn’t He do the same for us if we call out to Him in sincere faith eh? No reason whatsoever? So please don’t be afraid to cry out to God at any time at all, just remember to do it in sincere faith.
And today, we’ll look at a few scriptures that enhance and corroborate our Bit, beginning with some more words from Bruh David from Psalm 22; a cry of anguish and song of praise. He wondered why the Lord was forsaking him, since he was crying out, both day and night without any answers, (vs.1-2)
Then he remembered and changed His speech: ‘But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel/ Our fathers trusted in thee: they trusted, and thou didst deliver them. They cried unto thee, and were delivered: they trusted in thee, and were not confounded (ashamed). (Ps.22:3-5)
Oh my fellow believers, that’s the living truth! Followers of God are never ashamed once they truly trust and believe in Him!
Now hear Isaiah as he promised that Israel would be restored to Zion. ‘And kings shall be thy nursing fathers (foster fathers), and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.’ (Is.49:23)
What a monumental promise my brethren! And the good news is that our great and wonderful God CAN, and DOES, keep ALL His promises!
And since I promised myself to keep this Bit as short as possible, (smile) we’ll end with one more scripture, one from Bruh Paul, one we all know, where he talks about the results of justification.
‘And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience (produces perseverance); And patience, experience (character); and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed (does not disappoint); because the LOVE of God is shed abroad (has been poured out) in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given for us.
For when we were yet without strength, in due time (at the right time) Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure (perhaps) for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth (demonstrates his own) LOVE toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.’ (Rom.5:3-8)
And that says it all my brethren! And it’s surely significant that that scripture was one of the readings at church yesterday morning! So let’s take the bull by the horns this Monday morning, BE NOT ASHAMED, and get out there and do faithful and strong battle in Jesus’ name, knowing that He has our back! Much LOVE!
…but whosoever shall deny me before men…him will I also deny…before my Father which is heaven… (Matt.10:33)
Today’s Scrip-Bit 10 March 2014 Romans 12:9
10 Mar 2014 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: abhor evil, accolades, adrenalin, anger, aura of love, bitterness, bounden duty, Bruh Paul, carnival merriment, charity, chastised, Christ fever, Christ's service, Christian, Christian's conduct, christianity, clean heart, cling to good, confidence, conquerors, debts, dissimulation, enthusiasm, faith, false concern, false doctrine, fraud, frustrations, genuine, glorious kingdom, going through the motions, good conscience, gospel truth, greed, hissing of teeth, Holy Name, holy spirit, humble servants, hypocrisy, iniquity, invincible, Jesus Christ, jobs, LOVE, love thy neightbour as thyself, LOVE Walk, meet the enemy in battle, moans and groans, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, negative stuff, outward piety, Pharisees, positive difference, pure heart, rejuvenation of spirit, renewed vitality, rest, right heart, right spirit, righteousness., sally forth, sincere faith, sincerity, spiritual armour, strife, take a strong stand, taunts. lies, theatre of strife, time is of the essence, True LOVE, trust, truthfulness, unfeigned, ungodly world, useful purpose, war, weary souls, week of work, wiles, wisdom, worthwhile inroads
Romans 12:9. Let LOVE be without dissimulation (hypocrisy). Abhor that which is evil; cleave (cling) to that which is good.
And then the day dawned on a joyful Monday… And all I can hear in the background are moans and groans, hissing of teeth, and a few deleted expletives thrown in for good measure. (smile)
So Friends, I take it that you all are still tired from all the carnival merriment, but please don’t take out your frustrations on me, for I am just the messenger sent to remind you that you have to get up and go out and labour. Yes, you have to go out and earn the money for next year’s mas costume, or to pay back the money you borrowed to buy this year’s. Hn, hn!
Oh yes mih people, it’s ever so easy to borrow, but to pay back… Brother, we behave like it’s pulling teeth – and that’s without any anaesthetic. However, as a true, blue blooded Christian, you have to pay your debts, both to man and God. And you can’t repay either party by lying in bed moaning and groaning, bemoaning your sad and sorry state, a state that you created in the first place.
So let’s stop all the complaining RIGHT NOW, because it doesn’t help matters any, just makes them worse. Let’s simply get up and get ourselves together. And to help us get the adrenalin flowing, let’s sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with whatever gusto you can muster.
All together now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Oh brother, some of those voices sure sound hoarse and croaky! (smile) However, it’s not our actual voices that matter right now nuh, but the Christ fever that’s throbbing through our veins. So let’s get out into the ungodly world and join our fearless Leader, Jesus Christ, who is already at the front lines, rearing to get at the unbelievers, but unfortunately, He can’t do so without our help. So please, let’s get a move on, for time is of the essence.
And even more important than time in Christ’s service are the two statements contained in our Bit. ‘Let LOVE be without dissimulation (hypocrisy). Abhor that which is evil; cleave (cling) to that which is good.’
Yes Friends, in the stellar words of Bruh Paul to the church at Rome, our LOVE Walk should be without hypocrisy, certainly not like that which Jesus chastised the Pharisees for: ‘Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity (lawlessness).’ (Matt.23:28)
And the scholars have an interesting note on our Bit: ’12:9. Without dissimulation (lit. “without hypocrisy”). The Christian’s conduct in the local church toward fellow believers is to be a volitional caring for others, LOVING faithfully in spite of the response received. The LOVE is to be genuine and unfeigned.’
And tied right into all of that, is this directive from Bruh Paul to Timothy, in his warning against false doctrine. ‘Now the end (purpose) of the commandment is charity (LOVE) out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned (sincere faith).’ (1 Tim.1:5)
Oh yes my fellow believers, it’s made very clear there, that doing Jesus’ work calls for TRUE LOVE for one’s neighbour, from a right heart. We shouldn’t be just going through the motions to impress those around us, for then we’re doing the Pharisees’ thing; looking for outward accolades, but with unclean and lying innards.
Remember too that though you can fool your fellow man with your outward piety and false concern, you can’t fool your heavenly Father, because it’s your heart that He examines to determine your truthfulness, your sincerity.
And we’ll end with another of Bruh Paul’s admonitions, this time to the Galatians. ‘For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt LOVE thy neighbour as thyself. But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.’ (Gal.5:14-15)
Unfortunately though my brethren, we are NOT fulfilling the law to any great extent because we’re not really showing TRUE LOVE to our neighbours or ourselves. Consequently, we’re consuming each other in anger, strife, bitterness, wars, depressions, greed, fraud, resentment and the whole host of other negative stuff that’s currently controlling our rapidly declining world.
Oh Friends, it’s up to us, true believers and followers of Christ to take a strong stand, to try and change that unwise attitude that’s permeated our world, and is now steadily destroying it. So let’s get right on it today nuh, for as you can see and hear, everyday, a new theatre of strife and war is being opened somewhere in our disaster filled universe.
And that doesn’t mean that the old ones have ended, it just means that they are being relegated to yesterday’s news, with still no sensible and useful solutions in sight. So for the sake of our children and their offspring, please, I’m pleading with us, let’s do something(s) to make a positive difference today nuh. It’s Jesus’ avid desire, and our bounden duty. Much LOVE!
…create in me a clean heart, O God…and renew a right (generous) spirit within me… (Ps.51:10)
Today’s Scrip-Bit 3 March 2014 Proverbs 21:17
03 Mar 2014 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: adrenalin, aesthetic, artistic pleasure, aura of love, bacchanal, Bacchus, blessed, brass, calamitous, Carnival Monday, catclysmic, confidence, Cousin Sol, Creator of the universe, disastrous, evil emotion, experiment, fame, fellowship, fight the good fight, fool's wisdom, great works, he who loves pleasure shall be poor, holy spirit, honour, humble servants, in search of enduring fulfillment, invincible, jealousy, Jesus Christ, jobs, lasting satisfaction, lord god almighty, LOVE, mas, mind yuh business, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, pain, pan, party hearty, pleasure, point of excess, power, rejuvenation of spirit, renewed vitality, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, suitable for believers, sure conquerors, time, to receive glory, trust, useful purpose, valus of earthly pleasure, wealth, wine, wisdom, word of warning, worthwhile inroads, worthy
Proverbs 21:17. He that LOVETH pleasure shall be a poor man: he that LOVETH wine and oil shall not be rich.
And then it was Monday, Friends… Carnival Monday! And at 4.a.m on a warm summer’s morn, the party-goers are starting to pour out into the streets from the all-night fetes, impatiently waiting for the steelbands to get organized and start jamming some pan to get J’ouvert, the first session of the big road party underway. Mama Yo! Fete fuh so!
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