The Overwhelming Importance of Christians staying focused on God, and being prepared for Christ’s Second Coming!

Today’s Scrip-Bit   19 October 2026   Genesis 6:5a.

Genesis 6:5a.        And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth,

A new working week has begun my brethren; one filled with brilliant sunshine, bright colours of the flora, and fairly warm. That means today is Monday, and unless you have sick time in the bank, you will have to work all five days because there’s no holiday this time around to ease the pressure. (smile) And it’s somewhat of an anomaly that although many of us have been working five days a week for several years, we never seem to get accustomed to it, or handle it with a calm temperament. Many Monday mornings seem to find us disgruntled, short tempered and not very Christ-like.

And I don’t know if it’s because we don’t like our jobs, the people we work with, or the tough two way commute every day that sours our disposition to such an extent that we simply give up hope, stop caring and just go through the motions without any true sense of purpose or enjoyment and enthusiasm in our working lives. Now if that’s the case, it’s a sad commentary on both ourselves and our society. What a waste of many lives for many years! And what a sad tale it tells when so many people today only go to work for the money, try to do as little as possible, and find no satisfaction or enjoyment in their jobs.

The society is gung-ho about its social media and technological advances, but a high percentage of individuals appear to be more frustrated and disappointed with life, especially right now as our world is overwhelmed with strife, suppression and poverty, when the economic situation looks very bleak as prices for everyday necessities like fuel, housing, food and clothing are constantly rising, but salaries are not rising to meet the increases, and many jobs are being lost as technology takes over the work that people once did.

And to make that sad picture even sadder, in this rather inequitable society, the rich seem to be getting richer by leaps and bounds while the poor keep losing whatever little they have. I guess all of that doesn’t make for a happy or satisfied working class. Meanwhile, the powerbrokers and ruling technocrats spout a lot of heifer dust, but are really only interested in cementing their powerful positions and increasing their already enormous wealth. I don’t know if we’ve ever seen a time like this one where greed, egotism, selfishness and corruption have been so firmly entrenched, and even worse, so shamelessly exhibited by those who are supposed to be leading our society to higher ground.

It’s a crying shame the way the rich and powerful flaunt their wealth and power to excess, despite the numerous serious problems in our world. No wonder the ordinary worker isn’t enthused about going to work or about doing a good and fair day’s work even for decent remuneration. So what’s the answer to the problem, you ask? To tell the truth, I don’t know. The only thing that might answer all the problems is for the Lord to decide that it’s time for Christ to come again. (smile) Because our society is so sick and evil that it’s only the Lord who can clean it up.

Unfortunately though, it seems like our world might be as sick and evil as it was way back in time, that it could not be cleaned up, but had to be destroyed and started again. As the Bible enlightens us: ‘And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination (intent) of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually (all day long). And it repented the Lord (he was sorry) that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me (I am sorry) that I have made them.’ (Gen. 6:5-7)

Ah friends, who knows what the Lord’s thinking right now, but I’m sure that He’s very displeased with the evil and ungodly state of His once wonderful universe. And although nothing’s impossible with our omnipotent God, it might just be wiser to destroy mankind again, especially after unsuccessfully sacrificing His only Son Jesus to try and turn things around. And the time might just be right for John’s great revelation to come true. ‘And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.’ (Rev. 21:1-5)

Yes my people I know we’re longing for the day when there are no more, tears, pain, sorrow or death on the earth, but that’s the Lord’s decision, and as Jesus said of that time: ‘But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.’ (Matt. 24:36) But rest assured that day will eventually come, however, until then, we need to stay encouraged, trust God’s Word, watch and pray, be in a state of constant readiness for whenever that fateful day comes. And to help us do that, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, seeking divine aid.

Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise and thank You this Monday morning for our jobs; jobs we sometimes don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose; 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 weekend. It’s that rejuvenation of spirit which now allows us to sally forth with confidence into the evil and ungodly world, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s evil schemes.

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 allow Your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit to 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, thereby furthering Your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ! Amen!’

And with that boost to our confidence, let’s go out and do as we promised! Much LOVE!

…although evil is rampant in our world…believers need to stay focused on God…and be prepared for Christ’s Second Coming…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

The Overwhelming Importance of Christians Understanding that Thanksgiving is the Essence of Their Faith!

Today’s Scrip-Bit   12 October 2026   Psalm 100:4.

Psalm 100:4.         Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING CANADA!

Yes friends, it’s Monday, and a big Monday in our wonderful land, for today we’re celebrating our Thanksgiving Holiday, with gatherings of families and friends, giving thanks to Almighty God for all the goodness and mercy He’s bestowed on our beautiful country over the past year. And although the rain spoiled some of our plans yesterday, it looks like the weather will cooperate today, because the day’s turned into a beautiful, bright and sunshiny one.

Now let’s remember two things; first, that the food and merriment we’re sharing did not just appear by a miracle, but someone earned through hard work and the good graces of God. So, in all the celebrations, it’s imperative that we give Him the number one place of honour, because He’s our Sovereign Lord.   And secondly, that we most definitely exercise a modicum of circumspection in all our celebrations, because we know what happens when we don’t; serious accidents occur, even life ending tragedy, and we certainly don’t want any of that stuff marring our Thanksgiving celebrations. For all the ‘if I had knowns,’ will not be able to rectify the situation. So, let’s celebrate, but be careful!

And since this is Thanksgiving Day, it seemed rather appropriate for us to just run through some scriptures that deal with the subject of giving thanks. But because  there are so many in the Bible, especially from the Psalms, we can only select a few for our short space and time. And we’ll begin with these well-known verses from Psalm 95.‘O come let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise (shout joyfully) unto the rock of our salvation.

Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise (shout joyfully) unto him with psalms (spiritual songs). For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods…. O come let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker. For he is our God; and we are the sheep of his pasture, and sheep of his hand (under his care).’ (Ps. 95: 1-3; 6-7)

Meanwhile to the Thessalonians, Bruh Paul puts it very simply. ‘Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ concerning you.’ (1 Thess. 5:16-18) It could not get any clearer; rejoice, pray and give thanks, those are the three basic things the Lord requires of us.

And to the Ephesians, Bruh Paul gives them a very good piece of advice that’s ever so relevant for today. (smile) ‘And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess (dissipation); but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.’ (Eph. 5:18-21) Oh, if only most of us would just do that today, there would be much thanksgiving, little conflict and no dissipation. (smile)

Now, let’s go back to some wonderful verses from Psalm 100. The psalmist declares: ‘Make a joyful noise (shout joyfully) unto the Lord, all ye lands (all the earth). Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing. Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.’ (Ps. 100:1-5) Gospel truth my people! Only wish we could take those wonderful words of advice more to heart than we’re currently doing. 

And here’s a word from Bruh Paul to the Colossians that we don’t often hear. ‘As ye have therefore received Christ, so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.’ (Col. 2-6-7) Then there’s this wonderful verse from Bruh David in Psalm 34: ‘O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together.’ (Ps. 34: 3) And from Psalm 50, Asaph lets us know that God requires a thankful heart. ‘Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most High: And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.’ (Ps. 50:14-15)

Oh friends, that’s the exact opposite of what so many of us do. We don’t have a thankful heart towards God, yet we cry out to Him in times of trouble and expect Him to help us, and when He doesn’t, we get all annoyed and blaspheme His holy Name. That’s certainly not the way to do it. Now that’s enough scripture for us to ponder on today, don’t want to give us too much so it cuts into the celebration time. (smile) And since not all of us have the day off, because our modern-day society machine needs constant twenty-four-hour attention to keep it humming along smoothly, let’s approach the throne of grace through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, to help those who are at work secure divine aid.

Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise and thank You this Monday morning for our jobs; jobs we sometimes don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose; 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 weekend. It’s that rejuvenation of spirit which now allows us to sally forth with confidence into the evil and ungodly world, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s evil schemes.

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 allow Your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit to 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, thereby furthering Your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ! Amen!

And though we don’t have the full contingent going out to battle in the working world today, the Lord still expects those going out to put up a good showing. So please don’t disappoint Him! Much LOVE!

…thanksgiving is the essence of a Christian’s faith…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien    

The Overwhelming Importance of Christians Knowing and Believing that Faith is the Foundation of Christianity!

Today’s Scrip-Bit   5 October 2026   Hebrews 10:23.

Hebrews 10:23.           Let us hold fast the profession (confession) of our faith (hope) without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)

We’re back on the work trail again friends, flushed with the Monday morning blues! And although it’s sunny, it’s somewhat cool, with a strong breeze cavorting through the neighbourhood,  and it’s only going to get worse as the days get colder, calling for us to bundle up for the big chill. (smile) But that’s no problem, since we have the Omnipotent One, Jesus Christ, who created it all walking beside us all the time. Psalm 125 tells us like it is: ‘As the mountains are round about (surround) Jerusalem, so the Lord is round about (surrounds) his people from henceforth even for ever.’ (Ps. 125:3)

Oh my brethren, it might, or rather it will get rough, as Jesus says: ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) And He’s certainly done that by conquering hell, death and the grave through His death and amazing resurrection, but He’s also promised to make a way for us to get through whatever dilemma we find ourselves in. As this overview explains: ‘God will create a solution or a path forward, even when a situation seems completely impossible or hopeless from a human point of view.’

And He most definitely will! Remember His promise to the Israelites through the prophet Isaiah: ‘Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.’ (Is. 43:19) And He did it for them; forty long years they spent wandering in the desert, but they always had food and water, and their clothes or shoes never deteriorated.  And in Bruh Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, he assures us of God’s grace and mercy when we find ourselves in unpalatable situations.

‘There hath no temptation taken (overtaken) you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear (endure) it.’ (1 Cor. 10:13) Yes my fellow believers our God will never see us in tough circumstances and leave us unaided. Now what we’ve got to understand here is that God will not always take us completely out of whatever undesirable situation we might be in, because He might be using it to test us or build our faith, or whatever His higher mind desires, but He will certainly give us a way to endure it through His divine grace and tender mercy.

But we do have to develop our faith and trust in Him and adopt a good attitude when we’re going through the hardships and difficulties He’s allowed in our paths. Remember what the Good Book tells us: ‘Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.’ (Ps. 119:105) So we can only do those things we just talked about with a good and faithful attitude by knowing God’s word and actioning it in our everyday lives.

That’s why the author of Hebrews strongly advises us: ‘Let us hold fast the profession (confession) of our faith (hope) without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) And let us consider one another to provoke (stir up) unto LOVE and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.’ (Heb.10:23-25) So we must believe that God is faithful and stand strong in our faith, as well as gather with other believers and help them to live sincerely for Christ, especially as the last days are approaching.

And there is also this scripture from the Hebrews Heroes of Faith chapter that encourages us to acknowledge God’s faithfulness and be also faithful. ‘But without faith it is impossible to please him (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) And he goes on to relate about all the great men of God who lived by faith, like Noah, Enoch, Abraham, Moses, etc.

‘These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded (assured) of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country (homeland). And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from when they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.’ (Heb. 11:13-16)

Now that’s the kind of faith we need to develop my people. And it’s certainly not easy to do, but for divine aid to do it, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn. Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise and thank You this Monday morning for our jobs; jobs we sometimes don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose; 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 weekend. It’s that rejuvenation of spirit which now allows us to sally forth with confidence into the evil and ungodly world, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s evil schemes. 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 allow Your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit to 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, thereby furthering Your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ! Amen!

And with that divine fortification, let’s get out there and fearlessly engage the enemy in spiritual battle! Much LOVE!

…Christianity rests solely on faith…on believing…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien