Happy New
Year 2016 from ART SCOTT
All the best to you for a great new year!
May your dreams and aspirations come true.
Art Scott
1/10 Rejoice – if you’re feeling up or down,
depressed…find something to be grateful for.
A meal, a friend, good health…there is always something to thank God
for.
Philippians 4:4
Rejoice in the Lord always. I
will say it again. Rejoice!
Praise the Lord (by Chris Christian) – A Powerful song of
Encouragement
2/10 Let (it) Go – I know the Disney Movie probably had no idea that the concept of letting go actually is a spiritual principal that can free all of us to improve and go on with life. Letting go of relationships, expectations, things that bring on anxiety in our lives is a healthy thing for each one of us to consider.
Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about these things.
3/10 Change – change is hard but it is
sometimes necessary and can help us have a better journey. I loved what my dear friend of 30 years told
me about change (Frankie Stewart)…”Art, sometimes I have to do my own self-assessment
and realize there may be things I need to do in my life, and changes I need to
make. Am I the type of person other
people would be attracted to and want to know and be friends with.”
We should all be willing to be honest with ourselves and do
our own inventory. The pain of change
diminishes with time and we are the benefactors.
Trust God to see us through the difficult times, especially
when they involve change is something we all embrace (or run from). Andrae Crouch, one of the most talented
Gospel Composers, Arranger and Artist penned the words to a remarkable song
which never seems to lose the strength of its message of hope and
encouragement.
My Tribute, Singer Whitney Phipps
Romans 8:28 And we
that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, ho have been
called according to his purpose.
4/10 Forgiveness – When we forgive someone
who has wronged us, we do so for our own healing. It is a choice to hang on the pain and hurt
someone else has sent out way. It is
also a choice to let go, and not hold animosity or anger towards that
person. Getting back and betting even
is never a good solution.
From a spiritual standpoint, when God gave us His son, and
sent Him to die for our sins, when we ask God to come into our lives and
forgive us of our sins, He does so instantly.
Here is what scriptures say about God and His incredible love for us;
Psalm 103:12 “As far
as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from
us.”
Here is a choral piece that to me represents the ultimate
expression of Forgiveness, God’s forgiving us.
Enjoy Aretha Franklin singing “Amazing Grace”.
5/10 Give – This is one of my favorites…giving. I could talk for hours about how God has
been so gracious to me…I enjoy the story of George Mueller, the man who God
used throughout England to serve the needs of over 10,000 orphans. Many times he would be praying with the
children at the dinner table and asking God to send their “daily bread”…and
there was literally no food in the kitchen or pantry. A car would pull up filled with bread or
milk…and God the Almighty was there, spot on to meet the need.
I am thrilled to also share with you the great Nazarene
Evangelist, Chuck Milhuff, who has an outstanding sermon called “Giving Living”…we
cannot out give God.
6/10 Judge Yourself – not others! Leave judgement up to God.
Matthew 7:1
“Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be
judged: and with what measure ye mete,
it shall be measured to you.”
From this scripture I take away that judging others will
boomerang back to us – big time.
Several years ago, I had a friend turn his back on me. After 30+ years of enjoying his friendship,
he decided to just stop being friends.
As it turned out, I knew issues of his personal life that he felt
threatened that I might reveal his shortcomings to others. In an effort to cover up his own issues, he
became very rude and threatening to me.
I was instructed to never contact any his extended family with physical
harm.
I realized his own fears and dishonest life were haunting him
royally. Perhaps you have had a similar
experience. Allowing people to have
their space, forgiving them even in when they are unavailable, quite honestly
can be a very therapeutic experience.
Trusting people who may and do fail us is part of life. I wish this person no harm; through what I
call Christian Karma, God will even the accounting ledgers and I need not worry
about getting even. God can and does
fight our ‘battles’ for us – IF we let him.
The prayer ‘closet’ can work miracles.
I am living testimony to the power of perseverance and waiting on God to
work out relationships, finances, etc.
Here is a reference to an old hymn which deals with the issue
of judging and judging others;
7/10 Prayer – I am amazed how many people criticize the Muslim faith, which encourages their faithful to Pray 8X a day – consistently. If Christians prayed 8X a day fervently, we would have a different more positive, less fearful world.
I Thessalonians 5:17 reminds us to “pray unceasingly”
Matthew 6:6 “But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then you Father, who see what is done in secret, will reward you.”
When we truly believe that God not only hears out prayers, but answers them as well, a wonderful peace fills our soul.
Enjoy my dear friend of 30+ years, Tom Tipton singing “What a friend we have in Jesus”, with me at the piano.
The lyrics “all because we do not carry, everything to God is Prayer”, are so true…
If you prefer and soulful jazz version, try out this young man’s version;
8/10 Respect for HUMAN LIFE
Recently in Paris and California (USA) many families suffered
the loss of loved ones due to a brutal attack by a religious group called
ISIS. Terms like Jihad, terrorists are
used frequently on the news.
I feel that the sanctity and respect for HUMAN LIFE is one of
the key elements that needs to be addressed.
No religion who worships God the Almighty would ever condone killing of
innocent children and adults. I again
revert back to the issue of prayer. We
all need to pray for God’s protection and intervention.
What a friend we have in Jesus is the piece I feel that
represents the secure feeling we can all have when we truly trust God and
realize He is in charge of the universe.
Every Child and Adult is precious in God’s sight.
Jesus Loves all the Children of the World;
2 Timothy 1:7 “For
God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound
mind.”
Psalm 139:14 “I praise
you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful; I
know that full well.”
9/10 Holy Spirit - The
late Dr. Sumner Wemp taught me in college.
He was tremendous man of God and had an enthusiasm for the God that was
relentless. He used a simple graphic in
class that illustrated the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer. Either God is at the steering wheel of our
life via the Holy Spirit or we have our hands on the wheel.
What I love about the Holy Spirit is the fact that God’s
spirit lives within us to comfort us and support us in our journey. All we have to do is let Him be in charge.
Doris Akers wrote a marvelous gospel song called “There’s a
Sweet Sweet Spirit in this place”.
Enjoy this choir from the South.
10/10 Heaven – I have heard people laugh and
joke about going to Heaven. One man said
to me, I want to go to Heaven, but I do not want to me in the next bus
going.
Dr. Jerry Falwell once said; “When God is finished with a
man/ woman, God is finished and nothing on this earth can stop God from bringing
them home”. I am inclined to agree.
John 3:16 “For God
so loved the world that He gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in
Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Enjoy Cee Cee Winans singing one of her original recordings of "We Shall Behold Him", I would love to have her sing this at my funeral. Such a powerful song!
Happy New Year
Art Scott
949.454.1221
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