Today’s Scrip-Bit 3 May 2017 Luke 6:38.

03 May 2017 Leave a comment

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

Luke 6:38.   Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom (pocket). For with the same measure ye mete (use) withal (with that) it shall be measured to you again.

And then it was Wednesday; a bright and sunshiny day! Glory to God! No more cold and dreary-looking rain filled days! 

What a wonderful and blessed day it is, when the Sun and the SON are both shining brightly in a cloudless blue sky! All spirits are uplifted and we are proud and courageous to say: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.’ 

Yeh friends, we ought to rejoice regardless of the physical appearance of the day, but it so much easier to do when the day is warm and beautiful. 

And to set things right, (smile) I’ll just hit us here with a li’l wisdom from my ‘P.S. I LOVE YOU’ Poster: ‘To get more out of life, give more of yourself.’ 

And that’s indisputable truth my people! It’s a simple principle of God’s world; you want more, then give more. It’s just like the more you sow, the more you will reap. 

But unfortunately, we live in a greedy society, consequently, a lot of us want more, and much more too, but we refuse to give any of what we already have. That’s why we have so many problems in acquiring the more we want and there is so much fraud and deceit in our dealings with each other. 

And it’s not like we don’t know about the law of giving, because our Leader, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ spelled it out very plainly for us, when he dwelt amongst us, some two thousand years ago. 

And His words of wisdom are today’s Bit. ‘Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom (pocket). For with the same measure ye mete (use) withal (with that) it shall be measured to you again.’ 

What’s so difficult to understand in that statement eh mih breddren? Nothing really. It’s just that we allow the mores of the world; greed and self-aggrandizement, to dictate our behaviour instead of Jesus’ words. 

And thankfully, I won’t get into any sermon on the matter. (smile) We’ll just go through the Good Book and refresh our memories with some of its thoughts on giving. 

And we’ll begin way back in Deuteronomy, when Moses instructed the Israelites thus: ‘Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the Lord thy God which he hath given thee.’ (Deut.16:17) 

Please note the parameters my people; ‘as he is able…which the Lord hath given thee.’ So it’s obvious that you can’t give what you don’t have, but out of the little that you do have, you can give something. 

And that brings us to Jesus’ contention when He sat in the temple watching people offer money for God’s work. ‘And Jesus sat over against (opposite) the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much. 

And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites (a small copper coin worth 1/8 of a cent), which make a farthing (a Roman coin). And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, 

Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury. For all they did cast in of their abundance (surplus); but she of her want (poverty) did cast in all that she had, even all her living (her whole livelihood).’ (Mark 12:41-44) 

Yeh friends, it’s not necessarily about how much we give, but also how our giving pertains to our abundance. The widow cast in all that she had, while the rich put in only of their surplus. God obviously will value her offering more than those of the rich. 

As the scholars remind us: ’12:43-44. God does not measure giving by conventional human standards.’ So, in future, let’s remember that when we hem and haw about how much to give. (smile) 

Now hear Cousin Sol’s take on the subject. ‘He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack: but he that hideth his eyes shall have many a curse.’ (Prov.28:27) 

Now we have one more factor to this whole giving scene, so listen to Bruh Paul as he educates the Corinthians of the topic. ‘But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully (generously) shall also reap bountifully (generously). 

Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity (compulsion): for God LOVETH a cheerful (joyful) giver.’ (2 Cor.9:6-7) 

Yes friends, it’s not only how much you give, but also the attitude with which you give! Hear the scholars. ‘9:6. One’s return is determined by one’s investment. The passage doesn’t suggest indiscriminate giving, but it does denote “unrestrained” giving.’ 

9:7. Cheerful giver: The giver is to have a willing heart and a sincere desire to participate in the offering. Giving is not a joke. It is serious business, but it is a delightful experience all the same.’ 

And isn’t that the gospel truth my brethren? When we give generously and willingly we experience a rush of godliness! So let’s prayerfully ponder our giving habits today and see how we can improve them nuh. 

And we’ll close by sincerely and harmoniously declaring our Wednesday Wail. ‘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 that’s all we need friends! Much LOVE!

…generous and willing giving…is a reflection of God’s actions towards us…

 

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 20 July 2013 Proverbs 11:25

20 Jul 2013 Leave a comment

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

Proverbs 11:25.    The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself.
 
Oh Friends, ole Toronto and its environs experienced a wicked rainstorm yesterday evening! In a matter of minutes the sky suddenly changed from bright sunshine to cloudy darkness, the wind blew with a vengeance, and the rain came tumbling down in torrents, making it extremely difficult for drivers to see out their windshields, despite the best efforts of their wipers.
 
But we’ve been expecting that glut of rain, and needed it too, to cool down the hot and humid land. Some more rain began falling after midnight, but mostly drizzles. It’s the lightning that’s been playing out there for a couple hours, continuously lighting up the nightscape with its brilliant flashes.
 
Anyway, here’s a rather relevant prayer I recently found among some papers. I must have gotten it from my mother’s stuff, because I don’t remember it. And very appropriately it’s titled ‘Renew Toronto.’ But Friends, this prayer is desperately needed for our entire world which is undergoing so many negative changes and challenges that we’re powerless to keep up with them, even the odd time when we understand what’s happening.
 
Only with God’s help can we mange and hopefully overcome them. So please pray with me: ‘Gracious God, in your wisdom and LOVE You create us in your image and likeness, You call us to be your Presence in the world.
 
Let the Spirit of Jesus grow with us for this journey – inspire in us insight and vision for our Church community – ready our hearts and hands to bring healing to our sinfulness – move our feet to live the Gospel of Jesus with courage and joy.
 
Renew us, Gracious God. Renew us by your LOVING acceptance of us. Renew us to do justice, to LOVE kindness, and to walk humbly with you, our God, To renew the face of this earth. Amen.’ 
 
Yes my brethren, we do need God’s mercy and grace to help us renew and rebuild our world. And our Bit gives us some insight into one way to do it. ‘The liberal (generous) soul shall be made fat (rich, prosperous): and he that watereth shall be watered also himself.’
 
And there’s plenty of truth in that saying Friends! The generous person shall be made prosperous, because that’s just one of God’s laws. From early times, He stipulated it thus: ‘Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the Lord thy God which he hath given thee.’ (Deut.16:17)
 
At that particular time they were talking about contributions to feasts, but fellow believers, our God wants that to be an ongoing feature, an everyday occurrence in our lives.
 
Listen to Bruh Paul as he talks to the Corinthians about God LOVING a cheerful giver. ‘But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully (with blessings) shall reap also bountifully (with blessings).
 
Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity (compulsion): for God LOVETH a cheerful (joyful) giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.’ (2 Cor.9:6-8)
 
And that’s the living truth Friends! What we give and how we give it is terribly important in God’s domain, for He’s laid down the foundational law that we will reap whatever we sow.
 
Now here’s some info from the scholars on those verses. ‘9:6. One’s return is determined by his investment (cf. Prov.11:24, Luke 6:38; Gal.6:7) The expression (ep’ eulogiais) ordinarily translated “with blessings” here has the sense of “generously.” While it does not suggest indiscriminate giving, it does denote “unrestrained” giving. 
 
9:7 Cheerful giver: The giver is to have a willing heart and a sincere desire to participate in the offering. Paul is not so much interested in their money. Nor is God, for that matter, as the passage from Proverbs 22:9 indicates. The Greek term ‘hilaron,’ from which the English “hilarious” derives, is best rendered as the English text suggests, “cheerful.” Giving is not a joke. It is serious business, but it is a delightful experience all the same.’
 
And that’s just more truth my people! Giving is sometimes hard, but it always makes us feel better afterwards. Yes, you cheapskates. (smile) And please pay careful attention that last verse, where God will always enable you to have sufficient, so you can generously give away some.
 
So however you cut it my brethren, we can’t lose if we work with God out of a generous and cheerful heart. And we will close today with some most valuable words from Jesus on the subject.
 
 ‘Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom (the fold in a garment used as a pocket). For with the same measure that ye mete (use) withal (with that same measure) it shall be measured to you again.’ (Luke 6:38)
 
Now Friends, if Jesus said it, then it must be true! So let’s go out and practice it nuh. It will certainly help us to renew the face of our planet earth as we prayed earlier on. Much LOVE!
 
…he who refuses to give…or gives unwillingly…will receive the same treatment…in his time of need…