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

12 Oct 2026 Leave a comment

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

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    

Today’s Scrip-Bit   26 September 2022 Colossians 3:23.

26 Sep 2022 Leave a comment

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

Colossians 3:23.       And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily as to the Lord, and not unto men.

And after Sunday, the day of rest, peace, relaxation, praise and worship, comes Monday, the first day of the new work week, which for ages has been the nemesis or opponent of millions of workers around the globe. And why is that eh? Who knows? Maybe it’s because we’re just naturally lazy, with a poor work ethic, (smile) and it’s just difficult for us to get back into the swing of things after a couple of days off. 

But yuh know what, of all the days of the work week, Monday should be the easiest one for us to handle. Why? Here are a few reasons. First off, you ought to be well rested after two non-working days. Then, if you are a believer in Christ Jesus, you ought to have gone to church on Sunday, or offered up praise and worship, with prayer and thanksgiving by some telecommunication method, and thus received the Lord’s blessings and renewal of confidence and spiritual strength for the new week. 

Now, all of that should be nice and fresh on Monday morning. And when you add it the Lord’s new mercies and compassions that He provides for each day, then on Mondays we should be the most amazing workers ever, just ready and rearing to go to work, bright eyed and bushy tailed, with Jesus at the forefront of our lives. But unfortunately, that scenario doesn’t usually occur. Instead, Monday is usually our worst day, where we’re still tired from the weekend activities and work is the last thing we want to hear about or do. 

We’re definitely not looking forward to facing another traffic jam, both morning and evening, the road rage and the tiredness, both spiritual and physical that that daily exercise provides. But as they say, if we want to have a roof over our heads, clothes on our backs, and food on our tables, then the most logical way to get those things is by working. And furthermore, the best way to get through the hours of work is with a good, Christ-like attitude. (smile) 

Now nobody has ever said that was easy, but it is indeed very possible. Yes friends, that’s why Bruh Paul warned the Colossians thus: ‘As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him.’ (Col. 2:6) If Jesus is indeed our Lord and Saviour then we ought to walk the way He walked, that’s with a good attitude, sharing LOVE, joy and peace, wherever He went. 

Then later on, in that same letter to the Colossians, he spelled it out more precisely. ‘Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart (sincerity) fearing God. And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily as to the Lord, and not unto men. Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ. But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons.’ (Col. 3:22-25) 

That means we are servants of God first and foremost, and ought to behave as such, although we are reporting to men as our earthly masters, with the necessary rewards accompanying both right and wrong behaviour, since the Lord is no respecter of persons. Now, here are a few explanations from the scholars. ‘3:22. Eyeservice is work done only when the master is watching. Christian slaves (servants) were to work hard even when their owners were absent.’ (And that should be a big warning sign, a major red flag to believers in this day and age, as so many of us now mostly perform eyeservice on our jobs.) Singleness of heart means “a sincere disposition.” 

‘3:23. Do it heartily means the slave (servant) is to perform his slave (servant) duties wholeheartedly, doing the best job he can with all his strength.’ Hn! Hn! Now where do we find such a servant nowadays eh – few and far between! ‘A slave (servant) could be enthusiastic in carrying out his menial tasks because they were done, not so much for his earthly master (unto men), but for his heavenly Master (the Lord).’  

‘3:24. The reward of the inheritance (or “the reward which is salvation”): The fact that Christian slaves (servants) will receive salvation from the Lord rather than from men verifies the assertion in verse 23 that they serve Christ not their (earthly) masters.’ Sadly though, if we poll the Christians of today, we’ll find that not many of us are behaving like Bruh Paul said we ought to. And please note, he didn’t just say this to the church at Colossae, but also to the church at Ephesus. (Eph. 6:5-9) 

So you see, this ought to be a worldwide Christian behaviour, but unfortunately it’s not. No wonder Mondays give us so much trouble. Ah friends, if we call ourselves Christians, followers of Jesus, then it’s imperative that our lifestyles and attitudes reflect His to a much greater degree than we’re currently seeing and showing. As supposed ambassadors and agents of Christ our current behaviour is far from satisfactory. 

So please, let’s live what we talk nuh, practice what we preach. If we’re followers of Jesus, then please, please, let’s behave like Him and stop giving Him a bad name that He certainly doesn’t deserve, with our unchristian behaviour. And it all begins with prayer, sincere prayer. So, as one voice let’s offer up prayer through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn. 

‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. We desperately need Your divine help, for You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems. 

Heavenly Father, we admit that we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but we know that You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. That’s why we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading with You to give us wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.  

And Father, we pray that you will ease the pain of the many who are suffering from negative situations. Please show them Your awesome grace and mercy, and keep Your promise that You’ll hear our prayer, forgive us, and heal our land if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’ 

And to receive positive results, our motives and general behaviour have to improve. It’s as simple as that! Much LOVE!

…you can’t talk of Christ…but live for Satan…

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8​