Friends?

"I shall not call you servants anymore, because a servant does not know what his master is about. Instead, I call you friends, since I have made known to you everything I learned from my Father." - John 15:15

In our religion, it seems that there are so many rules to follow that it all just seems like a big burden. Jesus understood that things can seem this way to us and that's why He pulled His apostles aside and told them straight up that He wasn't speaking to them as the Lord Almighty and they must obey each and every commandment, but that He considered all of them His friends. He didn't want to be a weight on their shoulders, He wanted to share the news of the Kingdom of Heaven with them, and He wants to share it with us as well.

I know that religion and God talk can be the last thing people want to hear about sometimes, but when we feel like this, we need a change of perspective. While we might run away from our bosses sometimes, we usually always welcome our friends, and their good news becomes our good news. Jesus is longing to share His good news with you. I remember when those "Jesus Is My Homeboy" shirts were popular and it seemed funny at the time, but it's actually very true. Jesus wants to be a friend, a companion, a guide for us when things get tough. Learn to look at Him in this way so that you can share in His Kingdom with Him.

Today's Prayer:
Jesus, thank You for looking at me as a friend and not a servant beneath You. Help me to respond to Your call of friendship and bring others to You as well. In Your Name we pray, amen.

Jesus Freak!

"Not everyone who says to me: Lord! Lord! will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father in Heaven. Many will say to me on that day, "Lord, Lord, did we not speak in your name? Did we not cast out devils and perform many miracles in your name?" Then I will tell them openly: I have never known you; away from me, you evil people!" - Matthew 7:21-23

Why is it that I am met with so much resistance when I want to pray with someone or talk about God? It seems to me that I would have more friends and people wanting to talk to me if I spoke about wild nights and getting wasted as opposed to the fact that God wants to be everything for us… He wants to make up for the friend that betrayed you, give you love for the partner that doesn't show you affection, be a crutch when you need support. Yet the people that don't want to hear about God now become expert knee-benders, church goers, and bible-holders when an accident leaves a loved one in a coma, when a serious illness hits, when someone goes to jail, or someone is about to lose their house because they can't pay their bills. Where are they when life is good? The fact is, that soon or in a couple of years, I, like each and every single one of you, am going to die, and on that day, I will have to face my God, and on that day, I WILL NOT care about who calls me a "Jesus freak" today, who avoids talking to me because I want to talk about the love of God, or who tries telling me that I should take things easy. The only thing I care about, that matters to me, is that when I die, Jesus will know who I am. Therefore, I am NOT compromising on my faith and I WILL continue to try to do the will of God, because as far as I am concerned, when I call out "Lord! Lord!" I'm getting through those doors and joining all the other Jesus freaks!

Today's Prayer:
Jesus, it is so hard to live with Your joy and do Your will when most of the people around me only seek their own needs and desires. Help us to remember that this life is short and in order to live it righteously we need to put ourselves aside and do as You have taught us. Give us the strength to persevere. In Your Name we pray, amen.