Matthew 8:5-10, is the account of Jesus healing the Roman soldier’s servant. “When Jesus returned to Capernaum, a Roman officer came and pleaded with him, “Lord, my young servant lies in bed, paralyzed and in terrible pain.” Jesus said, “I will come and heal him.” But the officer said, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come into my home. Just say the word from where you are, and my servant will be healed. I know this because I am under the authority of my superior officers, and I have authority over my soldiers. I only need to say, ‘Go,’ and they go, or ‘Come,’ and they come. And if I say to my slaves, ‘Do this,’ they do it.” When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. Turning to those who were following him, he said, “I tell you the truth, I haven’t seen faith like this in all Israel!”

The officer came to Jesus to ask for the healing miracle which demonstrated his belief and faith, but the significance that Jesus highlighted, is the Officer’s understanding of Jesus’ power. The officer described this understanding in his own terms, showing Jesus and those around that he understood Jesus’ incredible power, and accepted it.

How does that apply to us? Do we really understand and accept that God can do miracles in our lives and those we love?

Dear Lord, help us truly understand your unlimited power, and accept that in your love for us, you can do miracles in our lives. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

If you have seen the movie The Passion of the Christ, or one of the few others that depict the brutal treatment of Jesus Christ, you may find it hard to watch the treatment of any human that way. It is unimaginable that the most Loving and Powerful human that ever existed allowed himself to experience this.

Why? For you.

Paul writes in Philippians 2:6-9, “Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.”

Today, Good Friday, we remember this ultimate sacrifice Jesus gave so that we may be saved. Let us take some time to appreciate the magnitude of this blessing.

Dear Lord, We are eternally grateful for the sacrifice you made for our Salvation. Help us never forget the words of Paul in Romans 5:8, “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” In Your most holy name we pray. Amen.

Today is Maundy Thursday, the day we remember the “Last Supper.”

As Christians, we typically think about the Last Supper as when our modern day Holy Communion was first instituted. However, what Jesus and the disciples were doing, was celebrating Passover, which was the day the Jews remembered God saving them from the Angel of Death in Egypt; the last plague before Moses led them out of Egypt. That day in Egypt, the Jews painted the blood of a lamb on their door posts as a sign of the agreement with God that the angel of death would “pass over” their homes safely. The first born in houses without the blood on the door posts was killed.

Mark 14:23-24 writes, “And he [Jesus] took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. And he said to them, “This is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice for many.”

At that passover meal, Jesus instituted a new tradition that we use today to remember how the blood of Jesus saves us also from death, eternal death.

Dear Lord, We thank you for the wonderful gift you gave us in Holy Communion, reminding us of the new agreement, “Salvation,” you give us if we accept Jesus Christ. What an amazing agreement. You save us, all we have to do is accept it. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Have you ever wondered why we are here some 2000 years after Jesus was on earth, and when he and the apostles spoke and wrote about Jesus returning for “Judgment Day?” The apostles would preach about the end coming soon, 2000 years ago.

The Bible is clear that no one knows when the end will come, but Peter writes a little about why we are still waiting.

In 2 Peter 3:8-9, Peter writes, “But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day.The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.”

God does not want anyone to be lost and is giving more time for people to repent and come to him. Which also means he is giving us, God’s voice on earth, more time to bring his message to those not yet saved.

Dear Lord, Help us remember that we are not just here on earth for our own entertainment, we are here to glorify you, and to bring your message to others. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

“How you think determines how you feel.” I don’t know where I first heard this, but excluding injuries and illnesses, I believe it.

Controlling how you think takes work and practice, but if you control how you think about things, you can control how you feel. For example, what if on one of those days when the bills were stacked up and you had no idea how you would cover them all, the Fedex person delivered you a package notifying you that you just inherited a fortune from an unknown relative. Do you think you would feel better? Nothing physically changed in this instance, you just looked at things differently and changed your thoughts and your feelings.

Another way I have heard this concept described is, “Events don’t have a meaning until we give them a meaning.” What we allow ourselves to think when something occurs gives the event a meaning to us.

In a similar way, Solomon wrote in Proverbs 15:15, “For the despondent, every day brings trouble; for the happy heart, life is a continual feast.” NLT

Dear Lord, Thank you for the incredible opportunities you have given us to appreciate your creation and those around us. Help us put our trust and confidence in you so that we may have a “happy heart” and enjoy all that we have. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.