Matthew Four

Verse:  "News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed; and he healed them."   -Matthew 4:24

Observations:  News about Jesus was spreading because of his ministry, works and miracles.  (Good news spreads fast, eh?)  People all over the place knew about him and what he could do.  In this passage it says that people with sickness were brought to him... In this day and time, who knows how far they had to travel.  This shows the extreme faith people had in Jesus... that they were willing to travel, and risk getting worse in their sickness, to see the one who could heal them.  And what happens?  Jesus heals them all.  So I see a lot taking place in this one, small passage.  Sickness, faith, hope, compassion, healing.  The passage also shows the power that Jesus has.  He isn't curing colds here... he's taking away chronic pain, drawing out demons, making the paralyzed walk... that's power!  

Application:  So... if all of these people were willing to risk their lives just to catch a glimpse of Jesus, or get a chance to be healed by him, why do we/I have such a hard time taking leaps of faith?  The faith these people had is something I can learn from.  Also... I've mentioned before that I have a hard time handing things over because of my own stubbornness and wanting to do it on my own... for goodness sake... this man is making paralyzed people walk.  There is nothing in my life he can not do!  So why is it so hard to let go and acknowledge that?

Prayer:  Allow me the faith of the people in Syria... that I can let go of my control and recognize your amazing power.  Help me to move out of the way, letting things happen in your way... not mine.  Heal me from my short-comings.

Matthew Three

Verse: "John's clothes were made of camel's hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey."                                                                            - Matthew 3:4

Observations: John was wearing very simple and "poor" clothing made of camel's hair... which I assume is not the best.  He is also eating locusts and wild honey for his meals.  It shows the life of a very simple man who does not need a lot of essentials for living.  He gets by on what he can utilize; not rich, material objects.

Application: I think it can be easy for us to get wrapped up in materialism... wanting this, wanting that, thinking we need this or that.  In reality, it's just a wanting of more things to fill up our life.  John doesn't seem to have this need for large, flashy objects to gain social status. In my life I think I need to think twice before making purchases and asking myself if it's really necessary and if I can go without the newest thing out there.  I know I don't struggle with this too much, but sometimes those impulse purchases get me...   why fill my life with stuff when I already have everything I need?

Prayer: Help me to realize the things in life that I truly need and those that I just want and can go without.  Help me to see that I have been blessed beyond measure and don't actually "need" more stuff.  

Matthew Two

Verse: "...'Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews?  We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.'  When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him."                                                                                   - Matthew 2:2-3

Observations:  The Magi were traveling to find the king of the Jews and met with King Herod first.  When Herod realized that they were looking for a different king, he became disturbed. Why was he disturbed?  My guess is that it was pride.  Herod was the king, not someone else... and it shook him to the core that someone else might steal his title and not worship him.  Too much pride! 

Application:  I have no application here because I have no pride... NOT! haha  For my own life I definitely need to work on wiping out some pride.  The largest area where I carry pride is when I think I can do things on my own, without the help of God.  I can be very stubborn and prideful in this area.  What I need to do is hand my struggles over more easily and focus my worship on Him, not on other things.

Prayer:  Father God, help me to be less prideful in thinking I can do everything on my own.  In reality, I can do nothing without You.  Help me focus on that... More of You and less of me.

Matthew One

Verse: "Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly." - Matthew 1:19

Observations: The first thing that popped out at me was that Joseph was righteous.  I'm sure when he found out that Mary was pregnant, many things went through his mind.  But even so, he did not want her to be ridiculed.  He wanted to take care of things quietly so that no one would notice or know what had happened.  It shows great and admirable character. 

Application: At times I need to be more careful about "calling people out" for their flaws or short-comings... after all, who am I?  I need to be more righteous all around.

Prayer: Lord, mold me more to Your image; to be more righteous and aware of myself and those around me.  Allow me to see through different lenses instead of the ones that can at times lead me to be too critical.

The Matthew Challenge

On Sunday morning at the Pursuit, Matt issued a challenge to the church.  As there are 28 days until Easter, and as the book of Matthew has 28 chapters... read a chapter a day and find a verse that sticks out and apply it to your life.  I invite anyone reading to join in!  After reading your chapter, do the following:

*Pick out and write one verse that stands out to you.

*Write a few observations about the verse.

*Write a few sentences about how you can apply the verse to your life.

*Write a prayer to God and listen to what He might be saying to you.

I tend to be terrible at sticking with things such as this.  So, as a method of accountability, I'm going to post my thoughts each day.  I actually did start yesterday, but just decided to blog about this tonight... feel free to join in on our (and my) "pursuit" through Matthew.

You can also check out the staff and their thoughts through the Pursuit webpage.

What a night!

Tonight, I have more to write about. :)  So after IU's amazing win over Purdue last night, I got to watch Miami take on Duke here in Coral Gables.  Granted, I should have been at home studying for the ridiculous midterm I have tomorrow, but alas... I could not stay away from a basketball game, especially when it features 4th ranked Duke.

My friend and I arrived early so as to assure our spot in the student section.  Not long after being there, she got a text from her friend... who asked us to join her in her family's suite.  So, the night started well.  A basketball game, in the suite, free food, beverage, etc.  The view was amazing and the basketball was WELL worth skipping my study time.  UM has had a rough time since starting conference play... we're also on the bubble for the tournament after starting the season at 13-0.  If you watched the game or saw highlights, you know that UM held a 10-20 point lead for a good portion of the game, only to see Duke chip away and make a come back.  The game was intense and close at the end... BUT, we were able to pull it out!  UM beats #4 Duke by 1pt.  (Would have been 4 pts except for an end of the game, half court shot that went in by the Duke player... thank goodness we had the 4pt lead!)

So, the game was amazing!  The view was great!  Box Suite was great (thanks Allison!)... and the company was a lot of fun too!  How could it get better?   Oh, by being offered two COURT SIDE SEATS for Saturday's game against Maryland.  How fun!?!?!  The seats are literally on the sideline practically right under the basket.  So, if you watch the game Saturday, look for Jaime and I... hopefully I won't look bloated! HAHA  

What a night!  Hopefully I'll have something more insightful to post soon... until then... GO CANES!

Indiana, Our Indiana...

Wow, it's been awhile since I posted... so I thought I would take this short break to say how exciting it was to watch IU beat Purdue tonight.  What a great game!  I love it when IU beats Purdue at, well, anything! :)  GO IU!