Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 August 2014 Psalm 134:2

24 Aug 2014 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 134:2.     Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the Lord.

Well hello there mih lovelies! It’s a new day –Sunday –the day of the Lord, when we gather in His sanctuary to praise, worship, give thanks and glorify His Holy Name!
 
And all God’s children boldly declared: ‘Blessed be the name of the Lord who hath blessed us with all good things!’
 
Yes Friends, as usual, today will be filled with a whole new slew of blessings and mercies from our magnificent and majestic God! Thus His people joyfully proclaim: ‘This is the day the Lord has made. We WILL rejoice and be glad in it!’
 
Ah mih breddren, what a wonderful God we serve! Who else would still fill our coffers with mercy and forgiveness in spite of our less than exemplary service and obedience eh?  Nobody else Friends, nobody else! That just goes to show how much He LOVES us and desires a personal relationship with each and every one of us.
 
It’s just like and earthly family, where the parents provide for and look after the children, nourish, protect and LOVE them, but not always unconditionally like our God LOVES us. That’s the big difference! Our God will never turn His back on any of His children. We are the ones who stray, who walk away from Him.
 
But yuh know what? Whenever we choose to return to His wonderful and LOVING fold, He is always there to welcome us back with open, outstretched arms and wrap us in a big bear hug, gently whispering in our ear how much He missed us and how glad He is that we’ve come back home.
 
Ah mih people, what a glorious Father we have in heaven! It’s just like the parable of the Prodigal Son that Jesus told.
 
So now that we’ve established what a great and magnanimous Deity we worship, let’s put on our Sunday-best and get ourselves out to the sanctuary and fellowship with other believers. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a big sprawling fancy church building, or an old wooden shack, because it’s not the building that matters, but the people within it.
 
And please note that dressing up to go to church is not to incite envy and jealousy from your fellow believers, as so many of us do, (smile) but as a mark of respect and appreciation to Almighty God, though He doesn’t really care so much about our dress, but more the state of our hearts.  
 
Now let’s check out Psalm 134, from which our Bit comes. It’s an exhortation to praise.  And according to the scholars it’s ‘apparently antiphonal: the people call on the priests to bless the Lord (vv. 1-2); the priests respond by pronouncing a blessing on the people (v.3).’
 
So let’s get on with it my people: ‘Behold, bless ye the Lord, all ye servants of the Lord, which by night stand in the house of the Lord. Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the Lord.  The Lord that made heaven and earth bless thee out of Zion.’ (Ps.134:1-3)
 
Yes Friends, it’s short, but certainly to the point!
 
Now hear how Bruh Paul puts it to Timothy: ‘I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.’ (1 Tim.2:8) That’s certainly a wonderful idea, my brethren!
 
And the scholars have this to say about that verse. ‘2:8. I will…that men pray every where (or, “I intend…that men in every locality pray”): The Greek word andres means “males.” Men are to lead audibly in public prayer; women are to pray silently.
 
This directive remains the same “in every locality,” geography being no factor. The manner in which men are to pray is that of lifting up holy hands, that is, with a pure life, which is without wrath and doubting (disputes).’
 
And though women now conduct public prayers, the requirement for doing so is still the same; without anger, resentment and disputes. As Bruh David says so wisely in Psalm 133; the joy of brotherhood: ‘Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!’ (Ps.133:1)
 
Oh my brethren that is gospel truth, and what Jesus desires of His followers here on earth. But unfortunately that unity doesn’t exist in Christ’s earthly body, His church, as strong and prevalent as it ought to. There is still too much dissension, disagreement, resentment, envy and jealousy in the church.
 
We’re supposed to all come under one umbrella, that of the Lord God Jehovah, with pure and humble hearts and clean spirits, all for the purpose of worshipping, of fellowshipping, of exhorting and encouraging and teaching each other, so that we can stay strong and grow, become mature in Christ and spread the good news of his gospel through the living example of our lives.
 
But obviously that’s not happening, hence the poor view that so many unbelievers have of Christians and the sad state of our very troubled and strife filled world. Every day I hear about the hypocrisy with which we are viewed. And I dare say Friends, that if we, as Christians had a better testimony amongst the heathen, our world would definitely not be as war torn and strife filled.
 
Please remember that we are the ones Jesus is depending on to bring the world to Him, to salvation and eternal life.  And if we falter on the job, then numerous souls will miss out on the good things that Christ died for them to have, meaning His tragic and very painful death would have all been in vain.
 
Oh my people, we can’t allow that to happen. So please let’s get our act together nuh, let’s clean up whatever we need to, so that when we go out into the world, others will notice a difference in us; that the light of Jesus is truly shining through us, that we’re truly the salt of the earth, and they will want to become like us, for remember that examples work more forcibly on the human mind than words.  
 
Remember too, Jesus’ last directive to the disciples, the Great Commission, of which we are now the recipients: ‘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)  
 
Let’s concentrate and ponder on that today nuh Friends, truthfully considering how we are individually obeying Christ’s directive, and then let’s invoke the Lord’s help to improve our obedience to it. For if we don’t improve, our world will sink even deeper into the evil morass in which it’s now wallowing. Heavenly wisdom is desperately calling for us to respond favourably. Much LOVE!
 
…it’s all about truly LOVING our God… sincerely LIVING our Faith…and diligently SPREADING His word…

 
 
 
 


Today’s Scrip-Bit 20 August 2014 Psalm 119:33

20 Aug 2014 Leave a comment

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

Psalm 119:33.  Teach me, O Lord, the way of thy statutes; and I shall keep it unto the end.

Ah Friends, it’s a damp Wednesday morning in my area, due to some sprinkles of blessings overnight. It’s also been forecasted to have thunderstorms during the day, so please dress appropriately those of you who live in the surrounding area; walk with your raincoat, your hat and your brolly (umbrella). (smile)
 
But the good news is that we’re half way through the workweek already. Praise the Lord! So just hang on in there, like Sloopy, the old song that only the old fogies will know, but everyone can imitate. Just another couple days and the weekend will burst upon us, and everyone will give a great sigh and declare a loud ‘Thank You God!’
 
But until then, let’s put our hands to the plough and don’t look back, look straight ahead, neither to the right nor to the left, and let’s run the race that’s set before us with a strong sense of purpose, trust, faith, hope and LOVE!
 
That’s the only way we’ll discover all that the Lord has in store for us, for remember He’s promised to give us a life with a future and hope of a better tomorrow. (Jer.29:11)
 
So let’s just get with the programme, no whining or complaining, regardless of the difficulties we encounter along the way, because our wonderful God has also promised that He will bring us safely through whatever storms we have to weather, and in better shape too.
 
Therefore we have nothing to fear, and whatever comes against us, we will handle with faith. And all God’s people joyfully declared: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we WIIL rejoice and be glad in it!’ Yes Friends, that’s the only way to endure this pilgrim’s journey successfully!
 
That brings us to our Bit, from the great Psalm 119, divided into 22 sections, one for each of the letters in the Hebrew alphabet. Our section today is ‘He’, the section that petitions the Lord for understanding. ‘Teach me, O Lord, the way of thy statutes; and I shall keep it unto the end.’
 
Yes my brethren, there’s no better gift we can ask of our heavenly Father than understanding of His Holy Word. That’s because when we understand where He’s coming from, we’ll be able to go where He desires us to go.
 
In other words, understanding opens up a whole new palette for us to paint on; discernment, direction and focus are brought to light, we’re illuminated, and guidance is totally enabled by the Holy Spirit.
 
And we have the perfect example of that in Cousin Sol. When the Lord anointed him king over Israel, and asked what he desired, Cousin Sol was wise enough to say: ‘Give therefore thy servant an understanding (hearing) heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people.’ (1 Kin.3:9)
 
Oh my fellow believers, the Lord was so pleased that Cousin Sol hadn’t asked for stuff like riches and power, that He nonetheless made him the wisest and richest man ever. (1 Kin.3:10-14) Wow!
 
And the psalmist in Psalm 119 feels so strongly about the attainment of understanding that he proclaims: ‘Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law; yea, I shall observe it with my whole heart. (Ps.119:34)
 
Oh my people, are we that hungry for understanding too? I surely hope so, because without understanding God’s Word, we can easily be led astray by the enemy and his evil minions. Now it’s not an easy thing to attain, nor maintain. It takes time, and diligence, and perseverance, and faith and trust.
 
For as Jesus said: ‘And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.’ (Matt.10:22) What an awesome promise Friends!
 
And we can see it, serious persecution still happening in many parts of the world, simply because of believing in Jesus. But if we endure the trials and tribulations with a staunch faith, as we said above, the Lord has promised to bring us out stronger, more Christ-like, on the other side.
 
However, to be able to do all of that successfully, we must first understand what the Lord and His Word are all about. And the psalmist makes a good argument of why understanding is so helpful, so vital and so necessary.
 
‘Make me to go in the path of thy commandments; for therein do I delight. Incline my heart unto (cause me to long for) thy testimonies, and not to covetousness. Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity (looking at worthless things); and quicken (revive) me in thy way.
 
Stablish (establish) thy word unto thy servant, who is devoted to thy fear (fearing thee). Turn away my reproach which I fear: for thy judgements are good. Behold, I have longed after thy precepts: quicken (revive) me in thy righteousness.’ (Ps.119:35-40)
 
Yes my fellow believers, every word there rings with indisputable truth! For understanding is the key to success in anything at all. With it, we know where to go, and where not go; what to do, and what not to do.
 
So today my Friends, let’s wisely turn to our magnanimous God, who’s generosity, like His LOVE, is unlimited, and ask Him for that key, that understanding we need to be successful in this evil, ungodly, troubled world that currently surrounds us.
 
Remember, Jesus’ promise in Revelation, during His message to the seven churches: ‘And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over nations….He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.’ (Rev.2:26; 29)
 
So today my people, let’s seek to understand and thus endure nuh. It’s the wisdom of heaven. Much LOVE!
 
…understanding is the sure foundation…upon which we can build the endurance…that we so desperately need to be successful…

P.S. Late night, spent mostly communing with the Lord. And that’s the gospel truth! (smile) And then to make matters even worse, just as I was about to send out the Bit, the so and so computer froze on me. Ah Lord eh! The trials and tribulations we have to go through to spread God’s Word eh! (smile) Much LOVE!

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 25 June 2014 Luke 13:24

25 Jun 2014 Leave a comment

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

Luke 13:24.   Strive to enter in at the strait (narrow) gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.
 

Greetings and salutations my wonderful Scrip-Bit family! May we all enjoy a blessed day as we walk proudly and faithfully in the joy and strength of our omnipotent God, while He showers us with His goodness and LOVE, His abundant mercies and forgiveness, all prepared new and special for this Wednesday morning.
 
And all God’s people declared a loud and thankful: ‘Praise the Lord! Hallelujah!’ And furthermore Friends, let’s proclaim and acclaim our faithful intentions: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we WILL rejoice and be glad in it!’
 
Oh my people, of that there is no doubt, because we’ll strive valiantly to accomplish that goal. And speaking of striving, a funny thing happened on the way to the forum. (smile)
 
Seriously though Friends, I have an almanac from my Insurance Agent tacked up on the wall on the right side of my desk, a fairly large one too, and if I turn my head to the right, I ought to see it. But it seems like I haven’t turned my head to the right for almost six months…that is until last night. Would you believe it’s still on January? Hn, hn!
 
Now there are other smaller almanacs on my desk that I use most of the time. But that is certainly ridiculous, especially since I always have a calendar in that position. Now I’ve been known to miss a couple of months, but this is surely the worst. Can you imagine that – not seeing a calendar, a big enough one too, that’s right beside you, for almost six months?
 
And coming to think of it, the whole plethora of stuff on that wall; acclamations, pictures, etc, I pass by them everyday and don’t even notice them! Chuh! And yet that was my studied purpose for putting them there… that I would notice them whenever I passed by. Oh the irony of it all!
 
But anyway, when I went to change the calendar last night, to my great surprise, I discovered that it contained a whole lot of quotes on different subjects from different people; a virtual treasury of goodies. Ah Lord eh! But I’m sure that such situations happen to all of us. We go searching for stuff far and wide, when there’s a treasure trove of valuable stuff right in front of us.
 
Sorry about that Leo (my Insurance Agent), but the Lord does move in mysterious ways. He knew that come June, I’d need some words of wisdom to share. (smile)
 
Anyway, the first item is titled ‘STRIVE!’ And the quote is attributed to Rowland Hill. Now I can’t say much about him, because there were several people by that name – a preacher, a viscount and a postmaster – when I looked it up. But the quote wisely advises us to: ‘Strive to live your life to the fullest and don’t let one day go by without trying to live it the best way you can!’
 
And that surely is gospel truth my Friends! Everyday we ought to try and live our lives the best way we can. Some days we will mess up and make a whole lot of mistakes, but the important thing is that we at least get an ‘A’ for effort. And that’s sadly where a whole lot of us Christians fall down. We don’t put in the required effort, and then we wonder why we can’t get ahead.
 
Oh my brethren, I’m here to tell us that living a truly Christian life takes mucho, mucho effort! And even then, there will be bumps and bruises along the way. Not because we’ve entered into a special relationship with Jesus means that our lives will be easy. His definitely was not easy.
 
On the contrary, when you accept Jesus as your personal Lord and Saviour, life tends to get rockier, because of the tests, the trials and tribulations the Lord allows or puts us through in order to refine us into a more Christ-like individual. That’s why, when we’re living for Jesus, we have to pay greater attention to how we walk, talk and behave, so that it conforms to His modus operandi.
 
No Friends, the truly Christian life is not an easy one, especially in this evil and ungodly world that now holds sway. But I can assure you, from personal experience, that it is indeed and interesting and exciting one! Oh my brethren, there’s no life like the one you experience when you truly surrender to God and allow Him to lead and guide you!
 
That’s why Jesus cautions us in our Bit: ‘Strive to enter in at the strait (narrow) gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.’ If Jesus says so my people, then it must be so!
 
Meanwhile, Matthew’s gospel relates it this way. ‘Enter ye in at the strait (narrow) gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat. Because strait (how narrow) is the gate and narrow (difficult or confined) is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.’ (Matt.7:13-14)
 
Now hear are some explanations from the scholars: ‘7:13-14. The closing section of the Sermon on the Mount presents two choices to the listener. These are presented in a series of contrasts: two ways (vv.13-14); two trees (vv.15-20); two professions (vv.21-23); and two foundations (vv.24-29).
 
This was a common method of teaching in both Jewish and Greco-Roman thought. Enter ye in at the strait gate (narrow) means that one must come through the narrow gate in order to reach the path that leads to eternal life.
 
Though many are on the broad…way, that leadeth to destruction (eternal separation from God), the gate that leads to life is so narrow that few there be that find it. Christ Himself is both the gate and the way (cf. John 14:6), and God enables men to find that gate (cf. John 6:44).’
 
And that my Friends, is what this life is all about; striving to find the narrow pathway that leads to Christ, to salvation and eternal life! Please, I implore us, let’s be wise and seek it nuh. Much LOVE!
 
…the highways are straight and wide…easy to find…but not so the narrow and winding byways…those we must diligently seek to find…

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 May 2014 Acts 10:38

08 May 2014 Leave a comment

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

Acts 10:38.     How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.

Oh Friends, oh Friends, it’s Thursday, it’s Thursday, the day before Friday, the day before the weekend! And we are definitely alive and kicking! So let’s praise our wonderful God and enjoy it nuh!

And all God’s children loudly and boldly proclaimed: ‘This is the day the Lord, our magnificent and magnanimous God has made! We WILL, we SHALL, we ARE going to be exceedingly glad and enjoy it!’

Wow mih breddren, Wow! What a way to begin our day – with joy, gladness, thanks and praise to our heavenly Father, our Creator, Controller and Provider!

And all God’s people declared a loud: ‘So let it be! Amen!’

Yes Friends, the ole fella seems to be in fine form this morning. The Holy Spirit is just moving and grooving in him. Hn, hn, hn! But seriously though, I do hope that He’s also having a bright and uplifting movement in all your lives, because that’s what He was designed to do; to lead and guide us into all truth and righteousness.

And when we’re walking in truth and righteousness, there’s a special spring to our step, a bounce of pride and joy that is very discernible by onlookers.

And that’s what we’re being called on today and everyday to possess and display – that special joy that comes only from having Jesus as the sole director of our lives, where we just exude warmth, compassion, LOVING-kindness, empathy, wisdom, understanding, and above all, charity, in the form of agape LOVE!

Aye mih people, what a force for worldwide change we’d become, if we truly lived out the edicts of Jesus! As our Bit so graciously says of Him, when Peter preached to the Gentiles: ‘How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.’

Oh what an uplifting, encouraging and ever so relevant Bit of Scripture my people! Why you ask? Because it’s the same thing that God has done to each and every one of us!

Our heavenly Father has anointed each and every believer with the power of the Spirit of Jesus, so that we can go along our earthly journey doing exactly what Jesus did; heal, show compassion and mercy, encourage, uplift – in other words, just do good as is necessary.

And yuh know Friends, that’s not such a difficult task as we sometimes make it out to be. We just truly have to set our minds to do it. We have already been empowered by the Holy Spirit dwelling in us; it’s just left for us to get up off of our fat, lazy, shame-faced, afraid, hypocritical rear ends and do the job that we’ve been called to do as Christians!

All we have to do is set out every day, as Jesus did, and oodles of opportunities to do good, to uplift, exhort and encourage others will come our way. We don’t even have to go looking for them, they will find us. The problem is that we have to have the discernment…

Chuh! Discernment isn’t even necessary, because opportunities for good deeds stare us straight in the face each and every day, we just refuse to embrace them.

Everyday we hear about someone being sick, depressed, lonely, or just down in the dumps for no good reason, and all it takes from us is a phone call, or an e-mail, or text, a visit, or whatever method of communication you choose, to let them know that you’re thinking of and praying for them.

Is that so hard to do mih breddren? Absolutely not! But for some unknown reason(s), many of us supposed Christians believe that doing good is big business, and requires plenty effort. That’s just not true!

Oh my people, it’s the little things that truly matter. As the Jamaicans say: one one cocoa does full basket. And that’s the awesome truth! It’s the little things, done on a regular basis that truly matter and eventually make a big difference.

We’re talking about, small, seemingly insignificant things like smiling with a stranger, saying a bright and pleasant good morning to our neighbours, co-workers and even strangers we pass on the street, holding a door open for someone.

Oh Friends, all those things might be small, but they are extremely important in Jesus’ Lexicon of LOVE!

Why? Because that’s exactly what He did during His sojourn here on earth!

If you read the Good Book, you’ll see He stopped and helped people all the time. Ofttimes He even went out of His way to do so. He offered encouraging words to all He met. The only people He spoke roughly to and embarrassed were the Pharisees and the Jewish elite for their hypocritical behaviour.

Oh my brethren, doing good is not rocket science! It’s simply living a decent life, treating others the way we would like to be treated. Yuh know, if more of us would simply adopt that golden rule and consistently live by it… oh what a truly wonderful world planet earth would be!

But no, like sinful fools, we’re foolishly adopting the hate, greed, resentment, anger, bitterness, egotism, pride, envy, jealousy, and the whole host of negative endeavours that the evil world champions! How wrong, how sad, and how ungodly my people! We’ll never get Jesus’ LOVE Revolution going with that kind of attitude.

So please my fellow believers, today, let’s take a good look at ourselves, consider what we need to do in our earthly pilgrimage to sincerely carry out Jesus’ desires, to do good to ALL of mankind. Remember, He wants, and it’s our bounden duty to proselytize the entire world! So we can’t pick and choose, just minister to whomever he brings into our sphere of influence.

That’s the only way we can ever accomplish 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.’ (Matt.28:19-20)

Let’s do it nuh Friends, let’s make Jesus proud! That should be our whole raison d’etre; our whole reason for living! Much LOVE!

…and now abideth faith, hope, LOVE, these three…but the greatest of these is LOVE…! (1 Cor.13:13)…and for good reason too…





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