A Prayer for my Beloved

Dear Lord,

I come to you, with empty hands, a sorrowful heart, and a great desire to have you comfort Sonia. I feel very distant from her...geographically, emotionally and in my ability to comfort her now, when she's feeling upset regarding Lockerbie. I am showing her love and comfort the best way I know how, but for some reason I don't think it's doing a good job. I believe that because of what I receiving back from her, which seems to be a lack of need of me. Perhaps I'm wrong, perhaps I am of a help to her, either way I give this to you.

If there is a better way at which I could understand her and comfort her, please share it with her, or have her share it with me.

I pray Lord that you are able to heal her heart, after all this time.

My thought of the day

When I discovered the world could not keep my heart lit, I realized that God is the only one who could keep it burning.

Matthew 5:1-13 The Beatitudes (those whose hearts are pure)

It's been awhile in my continuing saga-blog of expressing my love to you, Lord. Yet, in an effort to teach and be taught, I'm going to be working with our next beatitude;

God blesses those whose hearts are pure,
for they will see God.

My initial reaction to this beatitude might have been this...

"Wait, so if my heart is pure I get to see God? Oh man...I think I might be out of luck on this one!"

In a sense...this statement's sub-text holds much profundity. Here's why...if we accept the principle that we, in no way, are able to uphold God's law flawlessly, thus being blatantly unworthy to "see" God when we die, but only through our true acceptance of Christ's sacrifice are we no longer subjected to the law alone, then this statement no longer holds truth.

Our are hearts pure? No. In no way, shape or form are any of our hearts are pure, and we MUST be willing to identify that and come to terms with that. Does this mean that we're "out of luck", so to speak? No, the identification of our sin is the first step in taking action for being able to see God in the end. The second is accepting in your heart that you accept that Christ has indeed died for your impurities and that through this acceptance, you are no longer subjected to the idea that only through obeying the law will you go to heaven. God has added a new element for His people. The idea of forgiveness.

Now does this mean you escape free? No way! Because when you have accepted Christ as your redeemer, much more comes along with this...a love of God, a desire to be more like Christ and with it an internal disgust with your sin and strive to no longer do it, but becoming aware that you will anyway and thus becoming aware of repentance.

God will purify your heart as you accept Christ and as you strive to follow His path and be more like Him. You will find yourself changing inside, in your heart, because God does not measure your money, your academic accomplishments, your "good deeds" alone because those are accolades placed on you by the world, but instead He measures your heart and it is through that heart that he will work towards changing you and it is through your work and acceptance that you will not only "see" God here on earth, but also when it is your time to enter the kingdom of Heaven.

Matthew 5:1-13 The Beatitudes (those who are merciful)

In the continuing saga of the Beatitudes, I present the next in our list of...the merciful (dum dum dum...my dramatic presentation tune!)

Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.

So, here we are at mercy. Yeah, this is like that moment in Karate Kid, where before Ralph Macchio owns that dude he's fighting at the end of the movie, the kid begs for mercy or something, right? Or it's towards the end of Count of Monte Cristo where Guy Pearce goes to James Cavaziel..."what happened to your mercy?" and he replies, "I'm a count, not a saint!" Great line, wrong attitude? Well, perhaps...nonetheless...this is in fact about actually offering mercy.

So, what does this beatitude mean? Of all Beatitudes I've written of thus far, I found this one to be very self-explanatory, but I'll break it down anyway, because it should be as clear as possible.

First, let's give the great example of who is the epitome of merciful. Clearly, it's Christ. He prayed, even on the cross while being crucified, to give mercy to these people who have persecuted him. If we have anyone to look at to admire and love for this it is Him. Even through all the pain that was caused to Him, he still asked for mercy.

That is just SO amazing. To ask God to forgive those who have wronged you.

And here's the best reason to give mercy...ready? Because God grants it to you. He gives it to you when you're a jerk, yelling at Him because things are not going the way you expected, or when you don't believe in His existence. He offers it to you because God is loving and forgiving. But He gives it because He expects you to give it to your fellow man. As Matthew 6:14-15 states, If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins. He also gives it when you repent for your sins.

This should just put you in awe. Why? Because we are in NO WAY that good. I find it hard to even comprehend that level of goodness, that level of forgiveness and mercy. It's hard to comprehend because I can't recall a time in life where I have ever been like that.

God's just simply amazing.

Me...

Lord, I am a sinner.
You are the redeemer.
I accept you into my life.

I ask you find the holes in my heart and plug them with your love and grace.

I pray that you take my pride and destroy it.

So many times I do not allow your forgiveness to come into me.

I block it.

I do so because I feel I am undeserving of your love, undeserving of your grace. My

Lord, bask me in your glory.

Hold me in your arms and hug me.

Vanquish my fears Lord...

Psalm 139

O Lord, you have examined my heart
and know everything about me.
You know when I sit down or stand up.
You know my thoughts even when I'm far away.

You see me when I travel
and when I rest at home.
You know everything I do.
You know what I am going to say
even before I say it, Lord.
You go before me and follow me.
You place your hand of blessing on my head.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too great for me to understand!

I can never escape from your Spirit!
I can never get away from your presence!
If I go up to heaven, you are there;
if I go down to the grave, you are there.
If I ride the wings of the morning,
if I dwell by the farthest oceans,
even there your hand will guide me,
and your strength will support me.
I could ask the darkness to hide me
and the light around me to become night-
but even in darkness I cannot hide from you.
To you the night shines as bright as day.
Darkness and light are the same to you.

You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
and knit me together in my mother's womb.
Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
Your workmanship is marvelous-how well I know it.
You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,
as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.

You saw me before I was born.
Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out
before a single day had passed.

How precious are your thoughts about me.
O God.
They cannot be numbered!
I can't even count them;
they outnumber the grains of sand!
And when I wake up,
you are still with me!

O God, if only you would destroy the wicked!
Get out of my life, you murderers!
They blaspheme you;
your enemies misuse your name.

Oh Lord, shouldn't I hate those who hate you?
Shouldn't I despise those who oppose you?
Yes, I hate them with total hatred,
for your enemies are my enemies.

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
Point out anything in me that offends you,
and lead me along the path of everlasting life.

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My dear sweet Lord. Guide me...know my heart...take ownership of my soul and guide me Lord. Lead me from sin my lord and forgive me for the times that I do...You know me...every ounce of me. Sometimes I want to hide from you...like Adam and Eve because of shame, but I am glad that is not possible. I'm glad you hold me accountable for my sins Lord and forgive me for all the wrongs I have done. Without you weighing my heart my Lord, I could very well completely drift off into the insanity of this world and pretend not to even know you. I am happy Lord that not only does your hand guide me, but I have friends who encourage the same. If it were not for your love of me and their love of you...I could easily get lost in this world. You are my rock, my wall, the giver of life and creator of love. If I were to sit here and think of all that I have, my instinct might be to want more, but my soul just wants you and to thank you for everything you HAVE given me. May I always hear you in my heart and trust you always...

Matthew 5:1-13 The Beatitudes (those who hunger)

It's been slightly over a week since I continued my saga of the Beatitudes verses withing Matthew, so tonight I continue with verse 6:

"6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled."

I am pointed to Psalm 11:7 - For the righteous Lord loves justice. The virtuous will see His face.

This particular beatitude really hits home for me...because I fail it so often. So to help dissect this, a few questions come to mind. What does it mean to be righteous? What does it mean to hunger and thirst for it? And finally, How does one be filled with it?

I've found it hard to come to a good description of what righteousness actually is, so I think, who is it that would epitomize it? And the clearest answer is Christ. We was righteousness. He pleased God in every way while here on Earth and would perpetually stand up for what was right, what was just, and what was virtuous. He was in complete conformity with God's Law. So, since no one is Christ and we are all capable of sin, constantly...what does it mean for US to be righteous. It means that we are in constant thought about God's Law, the Lord's Word. That we are working towards acting as close to Christ as possible. It means that we seek a constant audience with God and that he is there to guide us through himself and the Holy Spirit. I also read something that I believe is an excellent deed. That when a righteous person sins, he finds it so hard to bear the weight of, in his heart, that he'd rather stay far from the sin, then to offend and disgrace his Lord. In addition to, should he sin (which he will, because we're all sinners), he finds himself in dire need to repent for what he did.

What does it mean to be hungry and thirsty for righteousness? Well, ya know that three meal a day thing? Yeah, this isn't exactly that, although, it does follow the same idea in a sense. Every day of your existence you're gonna get hungry and you're going to get thirsty...and these things need to be satisfied. You'll look for food, or something to drink or both to fulfill this craving. Well, your soul has the same needs...they need to be satisfied by the Lord. Now your stomach can be mislead by the type of foods you eat...if you just filled yourself with sweets and junk, your body will show it. Like your soul. Should you choose to not search for righteousness and instead indulge in the pleasures of this world, your soul will become ill. So crave it...crave righteousness...search for the good food of the Lord. It's satisfying...yum!

Finally, if you search for righteousness with your heart and your soul, you will find that God will fulfill you and guide you through the hard times. The Lord wants to fulfill you, he wants to give you his blessing and if you seek Him, you WILL find Him, just like the story says...

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Lord my God, I do crave you and I realize too, that I don't always...I ask you with ALL MY HEART to bless me and guide me and not only make me aware of when I'm not doing your work, but give me the strength to overcome sin. You are so good and deserving of so much praise and thanks! Please guide me as I walk to follow your Law and be more like Christ.

Christ is Forgiveness...

Isaiah 53:6
We all, like sheep, have gone astray
each of us has turned to his own way
and the Lord has laid on him,
the iniquity of us all

Forgiveness isn't I'm better this week than I was last week
Forgiveness isn't because I started coming to church
Forgiveness isn't I watched my mouth
Forgiveness isn't I'm not who I was back in college
Forgiveness isn't I read my bible in the morning
Forgiveness isn't I watch this kind of movie and I don't watch this kind of movie
Forgiveness isn't I'm a good person

Forgiveness is owed to and belongs to Christ alone in the cross, purchased for you, right standing before God. Every act of willful or ignorant disobedience was punished in Christ on the cross so that now we stand forgiven by no merit of our own.

all quoted from a Matt Chandler sermon...just fantastic!

Lent, The Lord, and His Voice

This entry was inspired through my recent struggles on hearing God speak to me and also on the discussion of my thoughts and feelings towards Lenten traditions.

Soon to come...there is SO much in my head and heart to work out...as I collect it all together, I will be posting it.

A Man of God...

My Lord, in all my failure, in all my life, I still give you praise and say to you even through all that failure what kind of man would I be were I not to try to make myself better for you.

I pray to you my Lord that I can be better man to you, my family, my friends, the people I know, the people I do not know. I ask you Lord to keep me by your side in my moments of strength and my moments of weakness. Teach me to be like you and to praise your name always...

To be saved
Rom 10:9-10 - If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved.

Psalm 32:2 - Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit.

To be God-fearing
Acts 10:1-2 - At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was known as the Italian Regiment. He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly.

To be a student of your word
2 Timothy 2:15 - Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.

To be humble
John 3:30 - He must become greater; I must become less.

To obey Your word
Psalm 37:31 - The law of his God is in his heart; his feet do not slip.

God are you SO unbelievable...

Starting at Matthew 9:23 it is...why? I'm not sure yet, but I know you have your reasons...

Spiritual Death...

My Lord, I ask you, let me die again, let me die over again spiritually so that I may raise up in a stronger bond with you...

As I try to single-mindedly focus on you, let all of my weaknesses die and may I be resurrected in your name Lord.

Matthew 5: 1-13 - The Beatitudes (those who are humble)

Another continuation of my interpretation and explanation of The Beatitudes. Tonight's is the third in the list...

"5 God blesses those who are humble,
for they will inherit the whole earth."

Depending on what translation of the bible you are reading, some say the "meek" versus the "humble". Relatively an interchangeable word, so if you see it spelled out differently in a different translation, don't freak, it's all synonymous.

So what does it mean to be meek / humble? And why are they getting the earth? And when? And why does God bless these people? What is it about those who show humility that grants them favor by God?

Truly excellent questions (Thanks...hehehe...guess that wasn't very humble of me...boo...:( I'm learning...being a Christian is knowing you're a constant work in progress)...

So, I'm not going to take the professorial approach to this by saying "So let's define what it means to be humble, well, Webster's Dictionary defi..." you get my point...instead I'll define it by my understanding of what it means through the examples in my life. I remember the majesty of the nights while camping in the Rockies...I remember looking up to the sky and seeing more stars that I knew existed and was in awe. I remember that caused me to realize how big this world is and despite how big I thought I was in my world, I was humbled. I remember the countless times I was positive I was right over an issue...any issue...whatever it is...only to find out I was blatantly wrong and was humbled by it. Lastly I remember how confident I was that I could stand up to sin and defeat it in myself. I was wrong again and I was humbled.

Humility is a submission and a strength to God. It is the realization that God is in everything. It is the realization that God is everything and I am nothing. A man who is humble gives over his will to God. Thus he doesn't say "because of my faith in God, I can do anything!", rather he says "because of my faith in God, I ask that He does as He wills through me and strengthens me to serve Him." In Psalm 76:9, it says "You stand up to judge those who do evil, O God, and to rescue the oppressed of the earth."

My Lord, I know my heart and I know where you and I stand on this issue...in the past I have feared to trust you, feared to assume that you, alone, know what is best. But how I can continue to live that way knowing that I, myself, don't know any better. You see everything, create everything, guide everything and to love you is to trust you...I pray my lord, that as we travel our path together that I find humility and a complete trust in Your will. I want you to guide me, there is a permanent peace in that...a real peace, not some fraudulent misrepresented peace that fades. And I know my weaknesses my lord and I know they exist because I don't perfectly love and trust you. I acknowledge this and I hope that I can pay you much more than lip service to this...because even as I type I fail...

My Lord help me to take up the cross and follow you...

A new wall...

Today I've got a new wall up in my life...it's not made of fear, it's not made of my life's poor experiences...this wall...this SHIELD...this my God and he's the protector of my soul! He is my sword, my shield, my rock, my wall, my house, my tower, my heart, my love, my eyes beyond sight, and when I mess up, he is my redeemer.

He protects me from skipping accidents on escalators... :) He inspires my heart...he's got the match that lights the fire in my soul...

Awesome prayer session today man...thanks for helping me to understand you so much more and guiding me. I submit myself to you...whatever your plans, wherever you take me...sometimes my own will might get in the way and sometimes my apathy might get between you and I, but when it comes down to the bottom line...it's you Lord...only you.

You save me...when I drown, you extend your hand and it's my job to grab it so that you can pull me up...I trust you, even through pain.

A Home Among Your People

Lord, I have always found myself in solitude, more by choice than by need. This past month, I have found a home among your people. May we all grow with your grace and truth.

Your Voice and My Changes...

I have slept with your word at my chest every night for the past week as I work towards knowing you more. You have captivated my heart, you have lit a flame in an area of my soul that constantly has snuffed out other flames and every time the wind blows and the flame flickers, you're there making it brighter and bigger.

I have heard you in the past and hope to hear you more in the future and I pray that I am available to you in all that you want of me. I find myself faltering a lot in hearing you...wondering if what I am hearing is something you would say and when it happens I can distinctly tell what you're saying and I might not be obeying versus what you're not saying and whether it IS you. Please Lord, as we talk, I pray that only make yourself clear to me and that I am unobstructed from hearing you. I can feel you speaking to my heart in some many things. It's so unusual...I feel you in my chest and it's not all the time, but I know you're there.

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Two of your beautiful people have let me know something that was burning inside my heart but I was too blind to recognize and I am so appreciative...I know that our relationship is something that grows daily and I have so much to learn of you...my heart burns...

Tomorrow I will take something you have asked me to do over the past week and put it into action my lord. Spring cleaning has come a little early this year.

A vessel...

Today my Lord, I praise you with all the possible sincerity I can muster. You have given me so much in life and I seldom thank you. In fact, I complain, I ask for more, I argue with you and sometimes doubt you. Instead, today...I ask you to take me Lord...steal me from this arrogance, this sense of entitlement I have...for all the materialistic things on this earth are worthless to me...take them from me, keep me in your love and do with me what you will...

I give you praise...you are my redeemer. You take my sins and wash them from my soul and I only pray that as I go throughout this life, you only provide to me what you deign necessary to me carrying out your will. I know I will never perfectly follow you, but I will travel the rocky path barefoot and endure the cuts if it means I get to chill out with you some day and sip pina coladas on a beach with no sand... :)

You know my heart, you know it more than I do...all the good and bad that I'm capable of...my failures and my fears; my successes and my humility. The gifts you have given me, my passion, my love, my sensitivity, my love of the arts and use them to your will...have me share you through what YOU have given me...let me honor you so that others can learn to honor you and know you.

Today I put my failures behind me and let them dissolve in your mercy. Thank you my lord.

God Bless You John Newton...

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.

T'was Grace that taught my heart to fear.
And Grace, my fears relieved.
How precious did that Grace appear
The hour I first believed.

Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come;
'Tis Grace that brought me safe thus far
and Grace will lead me home.

When we've been here ten thousand years
Bright shining as the sun.
We've no less days to sing God's praise
Than when we've first begun.

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.

Cool quote

"Evolution, as a mechanism, can be and must be true. But that says nothing about the nature of its author. For those who believe in God, there are reasons now to be more in awe, not less."

~Francis S. Collins

Matthew 5: 1-13 - The Beatitudes (those who mourn)

In my continuing epic saga of trying to further understand the Bible, I am continuing my visitation to the Beatitudes. Last time, I spoke of my understanding of those who are poor in spirit, this time, we discuss verse 4 those who mourn.

"4 Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted."

The first question that comes to my mind in this verse is...what is it to mourn? Is it simply an emotional state of sadness, or grief? Is it good to mourn? Are there any ways of mourning that are not good? What do I mourn over?

How about I start with the last one...what do I mourn over. So, like I was an emo kid growing up...no I didn't dress in Goth, or walk around talking about death, but I'm pretty sure when Christmas came around and I didn't get what I wanted, I was probably pretty peeved. When you don't get that awesome transformer that changed from a robot to a green army jeep, there's just nothing left to do but to feel a little sad in here (pointing to my heart)...don't worry, I've got him now though...but was that something God's going to be comforting me about? Frankly, probably not. I'm not sure God's really pushin' the materialism bit. So what else have I mourned over? Well, what have you mourned over? Not having enough money? Not living the life you "expected"? A parent dying? A pet passing away? I want to step outside of the typical here and instead of discussing what makes me mourn, in the worldly sense, and talk about mourning from the standpoint of sin and repentance. Every time I sin, I mourn. My heart mourns. My soul mourns. Because I know if furthers me from God. Now we know that God's love is infinite,(a concept I couldn't even grasp in my wildest thoughts) but the idea of knowingly (or even unknowingly) sinning against someone to who I am so grateful, makes me sad. This is why we do penance.

I know my best relationship is one that's open, communicative, and forgiving and it's with God. He knows me whether I want to tell him something or not, whether I'm close to him, or we're not talking, and whether I even realize it or not. He knows my soul, he knows my sins, and he gives me the choice to make amends with him and ask for forgiveness and thus, his comfort. It is an overwhelming joy to have the knowledge that you can be forgiven and cared for despite what you've done in life. And sometimes, that's hard to grasp...and I get that...I really do...I battle with it myself. How can someone possibly be all-forgiving? I can't fathom it...and I certainly can't always do it.

I know my friends wouldn't always be able to forgive me if I were to be sinful against them all the time, but God's different. You NEED to realize this...You need (and I say "You", but I'm talking to myself as well here, realize I'm not just pointing this out to others, but also reinforcing to myself) to understand that this is one of the cornerstones of knowing God and our faith as Christians.

We all don't live perfectly, but we all could be happy knowing that God will forgive us for anything because of the sacrifice Christ made for us. All we need to do is ask, truly ask. None of this, "well, I was gonna ask God for a bike, I was told he doesn't work this way, so I stole one and asked for forgiveness instead..." Yeah...that's not it. We need to realize our sins and we will feel the mourning because we've hurt someone we care deeply for...and if you don't feel that, you need to understand yourself more...maybe ask, why don't I feel bad when I sin against God? What am I missing? Does God not mean much to me? Why? Explore your soul...if you seek these answers you'll find them...and if you DO feel bad, understand that God forgives you, even if you don't forgive yourself (which you should...heh...someone I know has problems with that...::points to himself::)

...Oooo...I've been rambling...Uhm...I'll have to look this over when I get back home...anyway...here are my thoughts...more to come...Stay tuned...same bat time, same bat channel!

Matthew 5: 1-13 - The Beatitudes (Poor in Spirit)

In my thoughts on how I'd like to lay this commentary out, I'd like to allow those who read to see the actual text (in a translated version of course :P) and then offer my understanding of it, as well as, my prayers towards God about it, because it is Him that I greatly desire to understand, thus creating this blog to begin with...

"1 Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them saying:
3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

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The sermon on the mount is the first actual teaching of Jesus to the masses that is expounded upon, in the Gospel of Matthew. In this teaching, it is my understanding that these are the characteristics that Christ cares about. They are to guide and show people the path to the Kingdom of Heaven.

I'm going to first say, that while I've done some research into a deeper meaning behind these, I think about what they mean to me...I find myself looking inward. Introspectively, I ask myself, do I have any of these values? Then I realize, that's not the question I should be asking...it's not whether I have these values or not, but instead, that throughout the course of my actions, every action, am I considering these and acting in their nature. (of course I'll fail miserably a lot, but putting that aside) Am I actually keeping these in the forefront of my mind as I go throughout the day. This returns myself to something that I was reading and realized that to understand this, that my thoughts must be more child-like in their reactions towards these words. (this leads me to ask...what does it mean to be child-like? How can I be child-like in my understanding of this verse and, generally, the word of God...more on this later).

In an attempt to understand the first beatitude, I think about what it means to be poor in spirit. Does this mean that I lack an inner-strength as a person? Am I weak-minded? weak religiously? No, I believe it to mean that I need to be empty for God, like the story of the prodigal son. He comes back, he says he's unworthy to be accepted back, he realizes that his only saving grace is through Christ. He realizes that his strengths are weaknesses, that what one truly needs to do, is give his will over to God. (Easy...uhm...heck no)

Perhaps I'm not as articulate in my writing as I am in my head, but I ask you God, help me to not only understand your word on a much deeper level, but also to be able to express it clearly, so that others can understand as well...

Discipleship is an on-going career choice and one that I have very little experience with...You have given me many gifts at which I can use to give your word to others, but clarity of thought and ability to communicate it is not one of them. :) (Yes, God, I did just give you an emote) I pray that you let me be a disciple through word AND deed. For either one without the other is only half fulfilling your will and you don't deserve that and my soul does not either...

The Matty Series...(Sermon on the Mount)

So I figured, to help me truly understand the bible, I can't just read it. That's completely pointless because I'll probably absorb like 10% of it. (the little voice in my head just told me that 10% is probably pushing it for me :P)

So, because of that, how better to truly understand the word of God, then breaking it out and discussing it. This is extraordinarily important as I seek to accomplish, from this, numerous things.

1. To encourage myself to truly think about and understand the word of God.

2. To, not only challenge myself to think about it, but also come up with ideas of how to practice His word and find relatable scenarios that this would be applicable to in one's life.

3. To strike up dialogue with any readers...it's so important to spread the good news of God because it is only through him that we are saved and he tells us how to do this, quite plainly.

So, through these next series of posts I will use the Gospel of Matthew, by chapter, to discuss each idea of Jesus' teachings to man.