Isaiah 40:11. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.
And then it was Friday – a seeming summer Friday to boot! And all the workers around the world, declared a loud and joyful, ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday yes! Praise the Lord! The weekend’s here at long last!’ Ah Friends, I can imagine what this first warm weekend in the north country will be like; the barbecues will be flaming, the guys and dolls will be out in their summer wear, half-naked, the hot rods have already been going, and so too have my nemesis, the lawnmowers. Chuh! It never fails, just when I lie down to rest, during the day, some lawnmower around the area starts up its irritating noise, and I get up using some expletive deleted language. Sometimes its even my own lawn- maintenance person, but that doesn’t make me feel any better, possibly worse, since it’s right close to my bedroom window. Anyway, I’m thankful that the good weather is here, and for that I can, and will suck up the lawnmower blues. (smile) And more than ever, today, with the wonderful weather in the offing, we need to chant our Friday chant to keep the right perspective of the weekend in front of us. So let’s chant with a right heart and clean spirit. ‘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.’ And now that we’ve set the right tone for the weekend, let’s look at one of the greatest promises that God has made in our Bit. But first a little background. This chapter is titled, ‘Comfort through trust in God.’ And that’s exactly where our best hope for comfort and security lies my people! Isaiah felt the prophecy so keenly that he began the chapter thus: ‘Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.’ (Is.40:1) Yes Friends, the prophet saw a day of salvation coming for God’s people. Then he goes on to lay out this vision: ‘O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God! Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand (in strength), and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work (wage) before him.’ (Is.40:9-10) Now what other God is bold and confident enough to declare those mind-boggling things eh, my people? NONE other than the ONE TRUE and LIVING God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the Creator and Controller of this awesome universe! But He’s not done there, He declares in our Bit: ‘He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.’ Oh my brethren, don’t you just shake your head in awe and wonder at the prophecies that were made in the Old Testament and then were fulfilled in the New, with the coming of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Hundreds of years before John began crying out in the wilderness re the making straight the crooked and rough places for the Messiah’s coming, the Lord promised that His people, those in serious covenant with Him, would be fed and well looked after by His shepherd, when the time was right. And two thousand years ago, the time became right. Jesus, the human incarnation of God was born, gave us the good news of the gospel, then died for our sins, and rose from the grave to give us salvation and eternal life. And all God’s people declared a mighty shout of ‘Praise the Lord, for His goodness to the children of sinful men!’ So why do we keep on doubting the Word of God eh? Everything that’s been prophesied there, beside the Second Coming of Jesus, has been fulfilled. And there’s no doubt that the Second Coming will happen in God’s good time. Yet doubt and disbelief still linger in the hearts of many of God’s people, because we listen to the heathen who cry down God’s Word with a loud voice. Oh Friends, the volume, nor the insistence doesn’t dictate the truth nuh! So though many are up in arms against Jesus, and cry out vociferously against Him, that in no way denies the truth of His Coming to earth and His shepherd-like duties towards the people in covenant with His heavenly Father. Even Jesus described Himself in those terms. ‘I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.’ (John 10:11) And that He did Friends! So today, let’s release and remove any doubts, fears or anxieties that are preventing us from truly accepting and holding on to God’s great promise of a good, kind and LOVING shepherd in our lives, because we have already seen and experienced Him…and His name is Jesus Christ. More on this tomorrow, God in favour. Till then, please let’s do our bounden duty and truly LOVE our wonderful God, diligently LIVE our Faith and faithfully SPREAD His Word. That’s the wisdom of a true believer. Much LOVE!…promises, promises, promises…unlike man…ALL of God’s come true…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 1 May 2013 Psalm 18:2
01 May 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: awesome truth, benefits, cheap thing no good, cheapness mentality, downsizing, emulate jesus, equal rights, evildoers, exploited, faithfulness, food banks, food kitchens, good thing no cheap, healthy profits, human-rights, justice, Labour Movement, loving kindness, May Day, Maypole, mercy, my deliverer, my fortress, my shield, my strength, obedience, oppressed, outsourcing, poor getting poorer, rich getting richer, surrender, sweatshops, The Lord is my rock, trust, truth, tyranny, wages
Today’s Scrip-Bit 2 March 2013 Psalm 107:43
02 Mar 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: affliction, Christian walk, christianity, disobedience, fauthfulness, grace, great is thy faithfulness, heavenly blessings, LOVE, loving kindness, mercy, oppression, peace, rewards, righteousness., sincerity, sorrow, steadfast faith, transgressors, truth, understanding, upright in heart, wisdom, wise of heart
Psalm 107:43. Whoso is wise, and will observe these things, even they shall understand the LOVING-kindness of the Lord.
Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 February 2013 Psalm 5:9
24 Feb 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: bitterness, choke hold, christianity, cursing, destruction, faithfulness, fallen creation, forgiveness, generosity, God's faithfulness, heartaches, heavenly hosts, human condition, justice, loving, mercy, misery, mornng by morning, Most High God, new mercies, pain, praise and thanksgiving, religion, sadness, saviour jesus christ, sincerity, spirituality, tears, testimony, trust, truth, worship
Psalm 5:9. For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is very wickedness; their throat is an open sepulchre; they flatter with their tongue.
And yet another glorious day in the life begins my Friends, so let’s start it with some thanks and praise nuh. Let’s sing a verse of the old hymn that could probably be called ‘Old Faithful’ because it’s been around for a long time and whenever we sing it, it also regenerates our faith in the faithfulness and trustworthiness of our Wonderful God. Sing with me: ‘Great is thy faithfulness, Lord unto me. Morning by morning new mercies I see. All that I needed, thy hand hath provided. Great is thy faithfulness, Lord unto me.’ And isn’t that the awesome truth my fellow believers! We can all attest to the faithfulness of God in our lives; in the past, the present, and if we continue clinging to Him, also in the future. He’s just that kind of LOVING, trusting, generous and merciful God to all those who serve and worship Him in truth and sincerity. And all God’s people loudly and joyously declared: ‘All praise and thanksgiving be unto the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, who made the earth, heavens, and all therein, and who controls it with LOVE, mercy, justice and forgiveness! Oh Lord, we your humble servants truly LOVE You, and this Sunday morning we bless and praise Your Most Holy Name! Amen.’ Oh Friends, did you see the big smiles on the faces of our heavenly Father and our Saviour, Jesus Christ as those heartfelt prayers reached up to heaven? Even the heavenly hosts were smiling and adding their own ‘Praise the Lord! For He is good and merciful and forgiving!’ Ah mih bredden, if there could only be such smiles and happiness down here on earth, instead of the many frowns, heartaches, sadness, tears and pain that currently envelop our world, that have us in an ever tightening choke hold. But I guess that’s the price we have to pay for being a fallen creation. And sadly, we’re not helping the situation by consciously steering our lives to the sinful side of our nature, instead of the righteous and godly side. We all have that pocket in our souls permanently reserved for our Maker, which nothing or no one else can fill, but unless we consciously venture to fill it with Him, our lives will end up a total mess. And if you don’t believe me, just take a look around at our society with so many people hurting and searching for relief from their many sorrows. Unfortunately though, they are searching in the wrong places, heading in the wrong direction. They’re turning to manmade aids; drugs, booze, shrinks etc, which are not helping, but making them worse, increasing their pain and sorrows. Ah Friends, there’s only one antidote for the human state, one prescription to ease his pain and suffering: that’s Almighty God, his Maker and Controller! And until we realize that and turn back to Him in droves, just like we’ve turned away in droves, the human state will remain one of exceedingly vile, evil, ungodly conditions. Tragic loss, pain and ‘sufferation’ will continue to be his unenviable lot. That brings us to our very appropriate Bit: ‘For there is no faithfulness (uprightness) in their mouth; their inward part is very wickedness (destruction); their throat is an open sepulchre (tomb); they flatter with their tongue.’ And isn’t that the undeniable truth about the state of our society my fellow believers? It sure is! Now let me share a testimony of our Lord’s delightful faithfulness. When I began writing today, I had no clue what I was going to write about. I had not even opened the Good Book to look for a Bit. I just had the verse of the ‘Old Faithful’ Hymn written on a piece of paper, and contrary to my usual method of writing, where I do a rough copy on paper first, I just began writing on the computer and the words and ideas just flowed, so I continued, until I got to the unenviable lot of humans. Then I began chuckling, asked the Lord to guide me to an appropriate Bit, and opened my Bible. And, lo and behold, according to His great faithfulness, I found one in less than five minutes. Just goes to show Friends, that if we genuinely seek our God, we’ll find Him, and He will answer our prayers, especially where it pertains to His Word. Now let’s turn to some thought provoking scripture to corroborate our contentions. This comes from Bruh Paul’s writing to the Romans. ‘There is none righteous, No, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Their throat is an open sepulchre (grave); with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: Their feet are swift to shed blood: Destruction and misery are in their ways: And the way of peace have they not known: There is no fear of God before their eyes.’ (Rom.3″10-18) Oh Friends, doesn’t that describe our world to a T? It certainly does. Bruh Paul uses his vast knowledge of the scriptures, using various bits and pieces to highlight our insufficiency and sad, degenerate state. Listen to the scholars comment on that passage. ‘Paul quotes scripture to prove universal guilt. Scripture, not Paul, is the judge. See Psalm 5:9; 10:7; 14:1-3; 140:3; Isaiah 59:7-8’ Those are some of the scriptures Bruh Paul uses in that very revealing section of Romans. And rather appropriately, just as we began, we’ll end with a glowing testimony from Isaiah on the Lord’s faithfulness. ‘O Lord, thou art my God; I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name; for thou hast done wonderful things; thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.’ (Is.25:1) And that’s the gospel truth my brethren! So let’s go out now and do as that great prophet just said; praise and exalt the name of the Most High God Jehovah, for it is right and meet so to do. Much LOVE!…only in the faithfulness of our heavenly Father…can man put absolute trust…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 20 January 2013 John 8:42
20 Jan 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: Abraham's children, adopted sons of God, children of God, eagerness, father of deceit, Hour of Power, Jesus Christ, lies, LOVE, Lucifer, Possibility Thinking, sent from God, son of god, sons of abraham, truth, weak flesh, willing spirit
John 8:42. Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would LOVE me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.
Today’s Scrip-Bit 19 January 2013 Isaiah 39:8
19 Jan 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: christian brotherhood, Christianity in action, generous givers, good news of the gospel, let God be God, many blessings, men of faith, peace, stop fighting God, true christianity, truth
Isaiah 39:8. Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, Good is the word of the Lord which thou hast spoken. He said moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in my days.
Oh Friends, what shall we say to this new day that the Lord has made eh? The best thing we can do is be thankful for it; be thankful that we’re blessed more than most of the other earthlings. Then to show our true Christian brotherhood, we should make a decision to actually share some of those many blessings with the less fortunate, because that’s why we’re so blessed. Yes Friends, please remember that all we’re blessed with is not solely for ourselves and our immediate families, but also to share with friends, neighbours and strangers, any others who are in need. We’re supposed to be generous sharers not greedy hoarders. But I doubt that we’re doing a very good job of it since there are so many in need who are not receiving any blessings from us. And please note, we cannot fulfill Jesus’ mandate unless we’re willing to give of what we have, sometimes even sacrificially. ‘Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.’ (Matt.25:40) Remember true Christianity isn’t only talk, but also plenty action! It’s good to tell people about God, but how does that help the hungry, the homeless, naked and sick eh? We first need to minister to their physical wants, then tell them the good news of the gospel. That way they can actually see and experience the gospel in real action. And having reminded us of our basic purpose, let’s turn to our Bit. ‘Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, Good (Just) is the word of the Lord which thou hast spoken. He said moreover, For (at least) there shall be peace and truth in my days.’ Yesterday we saw how the story unfurled that caused our Bit. Today, we’ll look at a few other examples where men of faith simply accepted the Lord’s authority and wisdom without fighting back. We’ll begin way back in Genesis 24, when Abraham sent his servant back to his homeland to find a wife for his son Isaac. The servant, as the Lord would have it ended up at the city of Nahor. Using his smarts, he stopped by a well outside the city because he knew that at that hour the women came out to draw water. Then he implored the Lord to show kindness to his master Abraham. ‘And let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink; and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that thou hast showed kindness unto my master.’ (Gen.24:14) And before he was even done speaking, the beautiful Rebecca appeared and did exactly as he had implored the Lord. Ah mih people, here we see how our God really works in mysterious ways His high-level plans to accomplish. Because Rebecca ‘who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother…’ (Gen.24:15) I believe that made her Abrahams grand-niece. Anyway, the long and short of the story is that Rebecca’s brother Laban and father Bethuel came out to the well to meet Abraham’s servant, and after he told them what had happened; ‘Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, The thing proceedeth from the Lord: we cannot speak unto thee bad or good. Behold Rebecca is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master’s son’s wife, as the Lord hath spoken.’ (Gen.24:50-51) Yes Friends, our God is wonderful! Is there a better dramatist, a better matchmaker? No way! Everything just fell into place like a jigsaw puzzle, that Laban and Bethuel had no choice but to give their approval. Now here’s another example of simply accepting the Lord’s word, this time though because of wrongdoing. We find it in 1 Samuel chapter 3. This happens when Samuel tells Eli, the chief priest what God had said about the destruction he would cause to Eli’s family, because of his failure to rein in his two evil sons. And when Samuel was done telling Eli of the promised demise, Eli’s words were simply: ‘It is the Lord let him do what seemeth good.’ (1 Sam.3:18) Oh my brethren, sometimes we just have to bow to the Lord’s actions without a fuss or fight. Remember He’s the omnipotent One, whose intellect, purpose and plans are higher than ours. He is the controller of everything. And besides, causing a fuss when the Lord’s made a decision, doesn’t usually do us any good. So why bother and get all upset eh? Sometimes the Lord’s even trying to test us, to see our response to calamity and to His dictates. And we’ll end with one more example, that from Acts 5, where the Jewish council in Jerusalem is trying to figure out how to stop Peter and the apostles from preaching Christ crucified to the multitudes, since they hadn’t listened the first time, telling them, ‘We ought to obey God rather than man.’ (Acts 5:29) Then they preached Christ to the council. (Acts 5:30-32) Hn! This only made them angry. ‘When they heard that, they were cut to the heart (furious), and took counsel to slay them.’ (Acts 5:33) However, one of the wise and respected council members, Gamaliel, Bruh Paul’s teacher, cautioned them. After recalling two other religious upstarts, Theudas, and Judas of Galilee, who eventually perished and their followers dispersed, he declared: ‘And now I say unto you, Refrain (keep away) from these men, and let them alone: for if this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought: But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply ye be found even to fight against God.’ (Acts 5:38-39) Oh Friends, let’s ponder on those examples today nuh, and see if are any things going on in our lives where we are fighting God, and stop it. That’s wisdom at its zenith, because we’re never going to win those battles. Much LOVE!…the best way to function on this earth…is just to let God be God in our lives…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 9 December 2012 Psalm 37:29
09 Dec 2012 Leave a comment
in Inspirational Living Tags: condemnation, death and destruction, evildoers, God of justice, idolatry, inherit, loving kindness, rejoice and be glad, sincerity, the righteous, the wicked shall persish, truth, walking in God's will
Psalm 37:29. The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever.
Oh Friends, a new day is dawning over half the world, and we’re alive to see it! Wow! What good fortune! Therefore let us declare in thanksgiving for the Lord’s salvation, as the psalmist did: ‘This is the day the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.’ (Ps.118:24)That’s the way true believers ought to greet each day; with rejoicing and gladness, because the Lord in His mercy and LOVING-kindness has seen fit to give us another day to enjoy down here on Mother Earth, simultaneously filling us with His grace and strength to do His awesome will. Now isn’t that cause for rejoicing my people? It sure is! But we can’t truly rejoice and be glad unless we’re walking in the Lord’s will, walking the righteous path He has laid out for us. And as a reward for walking in obedience to His law, the psalmist rightly proclaims in our Bit: ‘The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever.’ Words of unassailable truth my brethren! However, to accomplish righteousness, we need to ‘Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore. For the Lord LOVETH judgement (justice), and forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off.’ (Ps.37:27-28) Yes Friends, our God is a just and righteous Deity. He dislikes evil, and has vowed to make the evildoer pay for his wrongs. Right there in the early stages of Psalm 37, the psalmist expands truthfully on subject: ‘Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil (it only causes harm). For evildoers shall be cut off (destroyed): but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.’ (Ps.37:8-9) But those who LOVE Him, and follow His dictates in trust and faith, He declares righteous and richly rewards them for their efforts. Cousin Sol asserts this in Proverbs 2, the reward of heeding wisdom. ”For the upright shall dwell in the land, and the perfect (blameless) shall remain in it. But the wicked shall be cut off (destroyed) from the earth (land), and the transgressors shall be rooted out of it.’ (Prov.2:21-22) Oh my brethren, this policy is stated in so many parts of the Good Book, and there are so many examples of it happening throughout history, that I can’t understand why we still insist on following the wicked path laid out by Lucifer and his evil cronies. Judging from the way we’ve turned away from the God of our fathers, towards Lucifer and his evil doings in the last generation, it sure seems like we want to be kicked out of the wonderful land that the Lord is preparing for those who serve and worship Him in all truth and sincerity. Surely, the worthless things of this world couldn’t be having such a dramatic magnetic pull on us, can they? Look at all of the negative stuff our endless desire for them is causing nuh people. Our world is daily being consumed with oodles of strife, stress, greed, hatred, resentment, poverty, sickness, oppression and suppression, with NO LOVE for each other! Now is that the kind of world in which we want to spend our golden years? Is it the kind of world we want our children and their children to grow up in? It must be, since we’re doing all the things that lead to death and destruction. I guess that deep down in our sinful nature there’s a death wish that we can’t seem to ignore or overcome. Oh Friends, please listen to what our God and Creator says through His prophet Isaiah, re the condemnation of Israel’s idolatry, and consequently ours. ‘And of whom hast thou been afraid or feared, that thou hast lied, and hast not remembered me, nor laid it to thy heart? have not I held my peace (remained silent) even of old, and thou fearest me not? I will declare thy righteousness, and thy works; for they shall not profit thee. When thou criest (cry out), let thy companies (collection of idols) deliver thee; but the wind shall carry them all away; vanity (a breath) shall take them: but he that putteth his trust in me shall possess the land, and shall inherit my holy mountain.’ (Is.57:11-13) Oh my brethren, it can’t be made any plainer and more straightforward than that! Do evil, and you’ll certainly be punished. But do good and serve the Lord God Jehovah, you will see the future glory of Zion: ‘Violence shall no more (longer) be heard in thy land, wasting (devastation) nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gate Praise. The sun shall be no more thy light by day, neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended. Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified.’ (Is.60:18-21) Oh people, if after hearing that, we still rush to embrace Lucifer and his wicked ways, then we justly deserve whatever we receive as punishment from the Lord in His august judgement. Much LOVE!…you can lead a horse to water…but you can’t make it drink…likewise…you can lead someone to Christ…but you can’t make them believe…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 December 2012 Psalm 116:7
08 Dec 2012 Leave a comment
in Inspirational Living Tags: abundance, bountiful, Comforter, confidence, distress, good times, grace, gracious Lord, grateful hearts, hearts, heavy burdens, inclement weather, joy, LOVE, loving kindness, merciful, mercy, minds, praise, prosperity, provider, rest, righteousness., sincerity, sing unto the Lord, souls, thanks, trust, truth
Psalm 116:7. Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee.
Ah Friends, it’s another grey, cloudy, rainy morning in my neck of the woods. But despite the inclement weather, life is good, and for that we are all very grateful. Therefore, let’s raise a mighty shout of joy to heaven, praising and thanking the Lord God Jehovah for His goodness, LOVING-kindness and mercy towards the undeserving children of men. And all God’s people declared in loud voice, with grateful hearts: ‘Almighty God, we praise You, and bless Your Holy Name, for all you’ve done and are planning to do for us!’ And we find a poignant example of praise for God’s goodness in Psalm 116, Praise for deliverance from death. ‘I LOVE the Lord, because he hath heard my voice and my supplications. Because he hath inclined his ear unto me (hath listened to me), therefore will I call upon him as long as I live. The sorrows of death compassed (surrounded) me, and the pains (distress) of hell gat (laid) hold upon me: I found trouble and sorrow. Then called I upon the name of the Lord; O Lord, I beseech thee, deliver my soul. Gracious is the Lord, and righteous, yea, our God is merciful. The Lord preserveth the simple: I was brought low, and he helped (saved) me.’ (Ps.116:1-6) Yes Friends, the Lord of hosts is our refuge, our hiding place, our rock, our shield, our provider, our comforter! In times of want and trouble, He is the first One we ought to call upon. Now don’t forget to give Him thanks and praise in the good times too. So in other words, believers ought to be doing as Bruh Paul advised the Ephesians: ‘Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;’ (Eph.5:20) And not only that, but also as He told the Philippians: ‘Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.’ (Phil.4:4) Oh my people, whatever life brings us, lemons or honey, we ought to rejoice and give thanks to our great God! It’s as simple as that. Note I didn’t say easy, but with God’s help and some practice, it’s certainly doable. That’s why the psalmist in our Bit today, could say with great confidence and joy: ‘Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee.’ That Friends, is the wonderful modus operandi of our God; dealing bountifully with those who cry out to Him in all sincerity and truth! But far too many of us are too proud, stubborn, rebellious and independent to ask for help, as Jeremiah shows, when talking about the destruction of Judah. ‘Thus saith the Lord, stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.’ (Jer.6:16) Oh what stupidity we embrace my brethren when we refuse to walk in the traditional ways of true righteousness! Doing our own thing only leads to disaster and destruction. But our God LOVES us so much, that even when we blatantly ignore Him and choose to go our own way, He still doesn’t give up on us. Listen to Jesus with this great invitation: ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (from) me; for I am meek (gentle) and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt.11:28-30) Oh Friends, there’s no better invitation than that to be found anywhere in this whole wide world. For who doesn’t want rest for their weary soul in this evil, ungodly, tiresome, fraudulent, busy world? And Jesus is willing to bear our heavy burdens, like He bore the cross all the way to Calvary, and our sins all the way to eternity. So why are we so reluctant, or should I say adamant in not putting our trust in Him eh, especially when we see the sorry state of our world, because we have placed our trust in unworthy, unfaithful man? Fellow believers, it’s time to put our utmost and entire trust in Jesus, since He is the only one who can help us escape from the deep mire in which we’re now wallowing. In Psalm 119, the psalmist wisely asked the Lord to ‘Deal bountifully with thy servant, that I may live, and keep thy word. Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.’ (Ps.119:17-18) Those are the kinds of things we ought to be asking for Friends; the ability to live righteously and abide in His Word, discernment and focus through His Holy Spirit, so that we can understand and enjoy all the wonderful things that He’s provided for us in His law. When we do those things, then like the second half of our Bit, we’ll be able to say in all truth, that the Lord has dealt bountifully with us. And like Bruh David, we can also confidently declare: ‘I will sing unto the Lord, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.’ (Ps.13:6) Yes my people, when we diligently and sincerely seek the Lord and try to do His will, then He deals bountifully with us, even more bountifully than we can ask or imagine! So what’s holding us back eh? Let’s come to the Lord today in all diligence and sincerity, surrender our lives to Him, rest under His strong, protective wings, that we may find the peace and joy He’s faithfully promised, and last but not least, enjoy the prosperity and abundance that comes to those who open their hearts, minds and souls to Him. That’s wisdom at its zenith, my brethren! Much LOVE!…to know, know, know Him…is to LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Him…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 25 November 2012 Jeremiah 20:13
26 Nov 2012 Leave a comment
in Inspirational Living Tags: complete trust, faith, hurricane flora, LOVE, LOVING presence of God, old school chums, praise, rain, righteousness., Sing praises to the Lord, surrender, truth
Today’s Scrip-Bit 17 November 2012 Psalm 119:130
17 Nov 2012 Leave a comment
in Inspirational Living Tags: devastating troubles, drudgery, enlightened minds, fall from grace, hope, Jesus, justice, loving kindness, obedience, opened eyes of faith, read and understand the Word, rejoicing hearts, righteousness., Saturday's child, serve and worship, sin debt, The God of second chances, the Holy Spirit, truth, work for a living
Psalm 119:130. The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.
Oh Friends, are you a Saturday child, were you born on a Saturday? Then unfortunately, according to our nursery rhyme, you have to work hard for a living. (smile) But don’t feel badly, because most of mankind also have to work hard for a living. It’s all part and parcel of our forefathers’ fall from grace. However, through the LOVING-kindness of our wonderful God, the sacrificed life of His Son, Jesus, and His Holy Spirit living in us, we’ve been granted some respite from the terrible drudgery and devastating troubles of this earthly life. And all God’s children gave a mighty shout of joy: ‘Oh thank You Father for sending Jesus to die on the cross to pay our sin debt in full! Thank You for giving us the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us in all righteousness! We praise and glorify Your Holy Name today and forever more!’ Yes Friends, we do serve and worship an awesome God! I don’t know when some of us will wake up and truly understand and believe that nuh. I sincerely hope that it won’t be too late for anyone. But it’s also comforting to know that once there’s breath flowing through our mortal coil, it’s NEVER too late, because the Most High is the God of second chances – even third, fourth and fifth. The problem though is that unless we read, understand and obey His dictates, we’re just wasting His time and ours. Why is that eh? Because as the psalmist so gloriously declares in our Bit: ‘The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.’ And isn’t that the undisputed truth, my fellow believers! For without God’s Word deeply embedded in our hearts and minds, we won’t be able to live the way He desires us to. Bruh David say it thus in Psalm 19, the creation and covenant of God. ‘The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.’ (Ps.19:8) Yes my people, when we read the scriptures, our hearts rejoice, our minds are enlightened, our eyes of faith are opened, causing us to develop discernment and focus. Now listen to how Cousin Sol, in his great wisdom, describes God’s Word in Proverbs. ‘For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life.’ (Prov.6:23) Oh Friends, the Lord’s dictates are ever so enlightening and guiding, because without them residing and resounding in our souls, we’d be totally lost in the utter darkness of this world, created by Lucifer and his evil minions! That’s why earlier on in this section warning against adultery, Cousin Sol says that we should not forsake the teachings of our parents, which should be the Word of God, but to ‘Bind them continually upon thine heart (and mind), and tie them about thy neck. When thou goest, it shall lead thee; when thou sleepest, it shall keep thee; and when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee.’ (Prov.6:21-22) Ah mih breddren, I couldn’t have said it any better! (smile) And what’s so great about God’s Word entering and taking up a sure reign in our souls is that it gives understanding even to the simple. That means Friends, you don’t have to be gifted with lots of natural intelligence to understand the word. Even a simpleton can, if he is prepared to read and meditate on it, for the Lord will gladly lead and guide him in his endeavour to learn and follow His dictates. And Bruh David verifies that by saying: ‘The law of the Lord is perfect, converting (restoring) the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.’ (Ps.19:7) Meanwhile, Cousin Sol describes one of the purposes of the Proverbs thus: ‘To give subtilty (prudence) to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion.’ (Prov.1:4) The scholars explain that verse this way. ‘The simple are naive young people open to any influence, among the chief addressees in the book. Knowledge means the apprehension of reality, including an experiential knowledge of God. Discretion refers to the power of formulating and carrying out the right measures.’ That’s the beauty of learning God’s commands my people! They enable us to live as good and pure and righteous a life as we can on this sinful, ungodly earth. And we’ll let the psalmist take us home, as he praises the Lord for His care towards us. ‘The works of his hands are verity (truth) and judgement (justice); all his commandments are sure. They stand fast for ever and ever, and are done in truth and uprightness. He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend is his name. The fear of the Lord (an awe filled reverence toward the Lord) is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever.’ (Ps.111:7-10) And all God’s people responded with a loud, thankful, ‘Hallelujah! Amen.’ We responded that way because it’s gospel truth Friends, which means that to restore some of the godliness our world has recently lost, we have to buckle down and seriously read the Word, so that we can understand it, and live the way it says we should. That’s the ultimate in wisdom my people! Therefore, let’s concentrate on becoming somewhat wiser than we are right now nuh. Much LOVE!…a true believer…must first know the Lord’s commands…then follow them as closely as possible…
