Matthew 14:34-36

What are you known for? When you show up, what do people think of you?
When Jesus showed up, everybody knew that people were going to get healed. Jesus had the power/ability to heal, and the compassion to heal.
I wonder what I'm known for. I mean, I know people think that I'm funny, and that I think a lot, but I'm not sure what people would think when I showed up. Hopefully, they could feel open to share things with me and feel that I would be able to help them. JM

Matthew 14:13-14

I love being alone. If I can't be with my family, then I'd rather be alone. Especially when I have stuff that I'm thinking about. It just seems like people get in the way of me being able to process things and feel emotions.
What I think is so amazing about Jesus is that even when he was placed in extremely frustrating situations, he never let it show. Jesus had just learned that his cousin had died and he wanted to be alone. But people followed him because he's Jesus. He doesn't get mad and magically disappear. Instead he heals people and ministers to them.
I think that's incredible, how Jesus was constantly moved with compassion despite his personal desires to be alone. It must have been so frustrating for him to be in a cage of human flesh. JM

Matthew 10:34-42

I don't have enough compassion. It's exceptionally easy for me to watch people suffering and simply think that I'm glad it's not me. That's sad.

I love a song by Brave Saint Saturn called Under Bridges. It talks about seeing Jesus in the homeless, AIDS patients, drunkards, rapists, gays, etc. It's really powerful. If you've never heard it, you should give it a listen.

Right now the students at my church are participating in a 1000 wells project. They are only drinking water for two weeks and saving up the money that they would have spent on buying drinks to give to dig a well for a village in Africa. I haven't been doing it, but I think I'm going to start. One of the best ways to acquire a trait or skill is to practice. So here we go. JM