Author Archives: oneminuteministry

How could I do that?

1 Thessalonians 5:17 pray without ceasing,

“Yea God, how am I supposed to do that?” Any of us that have heard that scripture, have asked that question. Anyone who hears that passage thinks to themselves, how could I get anything else done if I was praying all the time. We picture in our minds bowed heads and praying hands struggling with what to say for a lengthy time with God. Many of us struggle with prayer period, we are intimidated at the thought of it, much less how to do it “right.” If we are intimidated on the proper form, how in the world could we be asked to do it all the time? There is both good and bad in these feelings; let me explain. The bad in the doubt is Satan at work. He is the author of all doubt, the polar-opposite of faith, and in this doubt he keeps you from praying at all. Satan does not fear your good life, your knowledge of scripture, nor any level of pride in religion you possess. He knows in all of that is pride, pride is the root of all sin, and God will not use your pride for any kingdom work. However, the humble heart that pleas with God brings the power of God to defeat Satan! Satan fears prayer from the weakest soul, because that person understands how much they need God, and has the faith for God to do what they can’t. Satan fears prayer on every level, and can you imagine the level he fears the person who prays more than meal blessings and the lay me down to sleep prayers?

I always struggle with how much to reveal of my personal life here, but I never want to appear lofty, or having it all together either. The level of my struggles is greater than even the closest to me know; I keep my biggest ones to myself, as not to be a burden to others. Getting older sucks, and I feel as though I am stressed out beyond my ability, and of course this effects the mental and physical sides of me…..I am no different from whatever you are facing right now. I meet so many people struggling every day. I see God open doors for me to pray with many of you, and I consider it a humble honor to be able to lift you up to God. I have approached God in prayer for myself and others on seemingly endless topics, many times not even knowing how to pray, but still trying. Philippians 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. There are great similarities in that passage of Philippians, and the context of this passage in 1 Thessalonians 5:16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Comparing scripture with scripture is how you study the Bible and grow your faith. Both of these passages speak to trusting God in the details of your life. Sovereignty is God’s power and control played out every day, and your trusting it is your faith. The theme of 1 Thessalonians is one of hope.

Expounding “praying without ceasing” is a personal account with you and God. There are not directions in the Bible of how, no right or wrong, but to put it simply, it is a matter of the Spirit inside of you. Whether or not you realize it, you are being prayed for without ceasing. The Holy Spirit constantly tries to help you through this life, communicating with a Holy God the details of your life. Every second you can pause to plea to God what is on your heart, is a prayer without ceasing. God doesn’t need your bowed head and praying hands to hear your hearts desire for him today.

We just don’t understand…..

Psalm 107:19 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, And He saved them out of their distresses.

We just can’t understand….why bad things happen to good people. I lost my cousin in a plane crash two days ago. The shock is still gripping the family, every emotion running it’s course, and the pain will never leave those closest to Heather, and I have been told no pain is greater than loosing a child. I have friends that have lost children to sickness, and dirt bike crashes. Our oldest son is named after one of my close friends killed in a car crash on the way home from a night out we spent together, the tire we changed together killed him. Very few of us go very long in this life without a sudden tragedy striking in our circle. The inrush of pain combined with anger many times makes us question God. Those outside of the faith many times question how we can believe in a God who does this (he doesn’t do it). Many of us in the faith struggle with it when things like this strike so close to home. We just can’t understand……

God does not do evil, there is no evil in him; he is holy and pure and good at the core of his being. You must remember that when tragedy strikes, because Satan will try to convince you otherwise. Satan is evil, his tactics are evil, and when God permits these things that Satan does, we just can’t understand…… The book of Job is God’s lesson to us about the “why and how” answer to this question. We are granted an insight to a spiritual war, and heavenly dialogue, and the reason God allowed all the bad things to happen to Job. We also see the blessings on the other side of the tragedies. God uses the book of Job to encourage us to trust Him. 2 Corinthians 5:7 For we walk by faith, not by sight. God’s ways are so much higher than our limited minds can comprehend. He operates without the limitations of time, which we cannot fathom, therefore seeing the results the same as the present. Isaiah 55:8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. 9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.

We don’t want to grasp the level that sin has on us and this world. We don’t want to admit how much we need God. We want to be successful by all the worldly standards, and yet not focus primarily on the next life. We must understand this life is temporary, the next one is eternal. We must understand the urgency of the gospel, the need to proclaim it to all Christ has prepared to hear. We never know when our last breath will be, the last time we will tell someone we love them, but we must be assured of seeing them in Heaven. The joy that that knowledge brings, surpasses the pain of such tragedies, and helps us to understand Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. We don’t understand why bad things happen to good people, but we can be assured those good people are with Jesus right now, and they understand their faith in Him got them there. We have all of eternity to worship the One who decided how.

Romans 10:8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

In prayer this morning the Lord led me to another passage in Romans 10, which led to reading the context of the passage (vs15). It would be impossible to unpack this chapter, this plea of Paul’s to Israel to hear the gospel and believe. The depth of this passage dives deep into the sovereignty of God, yet has the simplicity of the gospel, to repent and believe. Israel was so wrapped up in themselves, in their religiosity, that they missed the Perfecter of the Law in their midst, the answer to all they sought, walking and teaching among them. The Law (the Ten Commandments) pointed to their need for Christ, and God sent them exactly what they needed. Yet the religious stood on their own accolades, and many of them will have eternity to regret their pride (no different from today). Can you see where that same chapter from 2000 years ago preaches to us today? Can you see where spirituality is taking hold, yet it can be in any form to any god, and sadly many will go to Hell because of the Universalism (all religions lead to god) that is being proclaimed? There was even some sort of agreement between the Pope and the leader of the Muslim world in recent weeks, one I refuse to even research because of how it will bother me. This world is turning it’s back on God, and my nation with deep Biblical roots, is becoming so liberal the lines are almost gone. May God have mercy on us all, and may many here come to repentance and believe in the gospel Paul writes about.

Are you proclaiming it to those God has put around you? Are you being a disciple of Jesus Christ? Are you being bold in your faith to coworkers, family, friends, those in your circle of influence? God is smiling on you if you are. 15 And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, Who bring glad tidings of good things!” This whole world needs Jesus, and many can go through life not hearing, understanding, or even denying him, simply because someone has not spoken of him they saw every day. How could we not tell of the Good News? The default is Hell to those that do not repent and believe!!!! God is a holy God, and because of his holiness, nothing unholy can be in his presence. It is that simple. The only way you can be holy is to believe the gospel of Jesus Christ, something so simple it can be laid out here:

You are a sinner by birth, and must pay the price for your sin.
You cannot pay the price by any means yourself.
God demanded a perfect sacrifice, and Jesus was that for us.
Jesus (God’s son) came to earth, lived a sinless life for 33 years.
Jesus died a painful death to atone (pay) for our sins.
Jesus rose from the grave 3 days later, defeating death for us.
Jesus know lives back in Heaven, and provided you eternal life.

All you must do is believe that is true, and talk to God.
Admit you are a sinner, in need of a Savior, and ask Jesus to come into your life and be the Lord of your heart and life.
It is that simple, and Paul writes of the promise of it here.
11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”

GO SHARE THE GOSPEL TODAY!

Listen, then respond

Proverbs 22:7 The rich rules over the poor, And the borrower is servant to the lender.

I have been asked many times, how do I study my Bible? Let me give you an incredible example from this morning, of how, and where, and Who to follow to read God’s Word.

I am under great stress right now, especially related to our business, and the finances of it, which naturally spill over into personal strains with them. I am in a season of selling things, for many reasons, but my debtors always loom, and I am responsible for multiple families well being; it is a stress that killed my grandfather, at the exact age I am now, I pray the Lord has different plans for me. This morning I felt the Lord tugging me to spend time with him, and the battle of the mind towards the anxieties of work began very early. I posted Colossians 3:1 So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. 2 Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ – that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective. (MSG) My mind continued to be torn, but I felt the Lord calling me to his Word.

As I drove Dalton to school, I felt the tug I was supposed to write this morning, and God had opened that door with the rain and solitude. As I kept thinking, the Spirit within me reminded me of that Proverbs passage above; it seemed a natural place to go with the reason for my stress (how God works/Romans 8:28). My mind kept going, and I thought of how to communicate it; maybe a life lesson for our youth. I thought of Proverbs being such lessons, and in my case, what would I say? I would tell my boys of my biggest mistakes, the first being drugs, and the next buying things I could not afford. I literally put debt next in line to drugs, for the stress it has put on me for over 30 years is as physically damaging as drugs did for almost the same. That seemed to be a natural way to go with today’s 1MM. I found the Proverb, opened my Bible, and I was floored at how God had worked this morning. The passage already highlighted above it was verse 6 Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it. It was just another example of how intimate my God is; how the Creator of the universe seeks a relationship with me; how he will do the exact same for you.

Do you see the how and the where is central around the Who? Do you see if you will listen to that still small voice inside of you, that it will become clear? Whispers from the Holy Spirit require attention, require action, require a mind that is listening for them through their heart. You likely have heard them, maybe responded to them, sadly denied them, and many times avoided their warnings. My pastor once told me, “That little voice inside your gut is the Holy Spirit pal.” There is great truth in that simple statement. Do you really want to know God, want to experience more of God? Do you really want to live for the next life, and try to just get through this one, or are you focused on all you can get from here, not worried about what comes next? He is inside of you, talking to you, do your best to listen and act upon what He says. Do not delay, for he may not tell you again.

Experiencing God to tears

John 6:44 No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.

You are not a Christian, unless you experience God. You may solve equations, find solutions, come to understand what was a mystery, explain great truths through your intellect, even understand the Bible somewhat, but you are not a Christian until God has tugged at your heart. At your core, you must experience God from within, an emotion you might not be able to explain, but you genuinely “feel” God. It is at that intersection, that your life changes, and you are eternally secure if you have repented and believed that it was God pursuing you, and that Jesus gave you the only way to reach him. John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. It is through the tug of God upon your heart first, that the need for the gospel of Jesus Christ becomes evident, the weight of sin becomes real, and the path of your life can step from damnation to paradise, all in a humble prayer of thanksgiving to the One who died for you. It all begins with God tugging at your heart, you experiencing God, and your reactions to that experience can (will) determine your eternity (you may only feel this tug once, not given another opportunity). When you feel a move of God upon you, react immediately, without delay, for it is a gift from God.

I grew up Presbyterian in the church, ran from God for about 20 years, after that God pursued me when I was in a Baptist church. I could lay out my grievances with both denominations in a very long letter like Martin Luther, but let me put this simply: One is stuck in religion, one denies much in the way of experiences. One is dogmatic in tradition, one turns their backs on gifts from God. Pentecostalism is another division, another blended sect that has many people abuse it, but understands the gifts of God are still evident for and to us today. Expounding upon these, I am not wise enough to do, but I struggle with all of them, and just choose to follow Jesus and his Word only, not bound by denomination. When I grew up in tradition, I thought you were saved by going to church. When I discovered grace, I was moved by experiencing God from within. When those “experiences” began to grow, not only in his Word, but seeing the evidences of prayers before me, I began to see how intimate God was with his creation. When I went to India, I could see, I could feel, I could testify to the levels of good and evil on a scale that takes me to this day to tears if I truly begin to open up to you about it. India changed me at more core, for I experienced God on a level I did not know possible. Many have heard me describe that trip as God dumping out the box I had put him in. A best friend of mine, a true prayer warrior, once told me, “You cannot be in the presence of God without being in tears.” That is truth, clear, simple, biblical truth. Have you been moved to tears by God? Then have you ever experienced God?

I am including a short clip, the one who prompted today’s OneMinuteMinistry. I pray it brings questions from within, ones that make you respond to that question, that tug from God upon your heart that you may have denied, or you may have acted once to salvation and never to discipleship. Jesus called you to become his servant, his disciple, to go out into the world and preach the gospel to all he has prepared to hear. I pray my Presbyterian friends would experience God, my Baptist friends to not deny the power of the gifts of God, and for you….to experience God….to tears.

7 Days a Week

Ephesians 2:10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

When, Who, through, and why we were created, all by God, and all for God. The depth of that passage is as deep as his sovereignty. Just to simplify it, you were created by God, for God, and he has blessed you with this life to do so, because he loves you. Anything and everything you do in this life can be used to worship God, to draw glory to him in your daily walk through the life he has blessed you with. He loves you so much, he died for you, and wants you to die to yourself for him. So many get hung up right there. The servants heart still struggling with the sinful pride, the reason Satan fell from Heaven too, the pride stops us from living the full life of Jesus’ disciple. The joy found in the servants heart is one of faith in the future, and trust for the day, all to be used by God; the days they walk in communion with the Lord, are as sweet as the honeycombs the Bible speaks of.

This weekend was incredible as my family saw the growth of our  race team. God has brought my testimony full circle, returning to the arena that was once my god, to tell of how we can love Jesus more than dirt bikes. I have been blessed to be able to open a National Race series in prayer, and I told the kiddos Sunday morning, “You can still be a Christian, and race dirt bikes on Sunday.” Kids are simple, and kids are direct. Many of them are likely viewed by their peers as not being Christians, simply because they don’t go to church like them on Sunday. Jesus condemned the supposed religious throughout the New Testament, and repeated how it was a matter of their hearts for Him. Matthew 9:13 But go and learn what this means: “I desire mercy and not sacrifice.” For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance. God simply wants your heart for him daily, he wants you to walk in communion with him daily through prayer and his Word. When you do that alone, God takes care of the rest, and you see the evidence of God before you almost daily.

We had noticed a lot of people checking out my bike when I had it parked up front when I was praying. I had a guy roll up to me on the starting line, and make a comment about it. We began to talk, and he was so thankful for his 91 year old mothers healing from a broken back. I asked him if I could pray for him right there on the starting line, we did, and I could see the joy of the Lord through his helmet. We went out to eat on the way home, and the encounter I had with an elderly black lady that was truly an encounter with an angel. She spoke to me as a “man of God” the first sentence, and we spent probably 15 minutes sharing our love for God with each other. After sharing business cards, I hope to hear from her again, but it won’t surprise me not to, because “angels” might go back to Heaven. Y’all……you don’t have to go to church on Sunday to be a Christian. You have to understand that Jesus gave you the only way to Heaven, and that you can never do enough work, be super religious, be a good person, not be that bad of a person, or anything else you might think pays your way. Once God helps you understand John 14:6, your life will change, and you will sacrifice this life each day, for the One who sacrificed his for you. Doing the good works is from the heart of love, not of duty, but just spending each day trying to show him how much you love him too.

Democrat Christian (oxymoron)

Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

You can’t call yourself a Christian and support a political party who supports abortion, or to be clearer, support the choice of abortion, and be of any or none political affiliation; the political sides are Satan’s greatest tools these days for the division that comes with them. I guess somewhere in me even wonders why this is even debatable, even warrants discussion, it is so clear, so simple a child can understand, why Christians can’t support genocide. Exodus 20:13 Thou shalt not kill. I mean this is in the Ten Commandments, it should be a really basic understanding of life, of things we don’t do. We don’t jump in the pool if we can’t swim, don’t run into burning houses, don’t play in traffic, don’t let babies drive cars…..and ya’ don’t kill each other. But God. He knew our sinful hearts, he knew the evil that lies within us, so he did make it perfectly clear that we are not to murder, and abortion is murder, and therefore it is wrong in God’s eyes, no matter any freedom of choice that falsely excuses it. Abortion is so wrong on so many levels, but you are playing God, elevating yourself to his position, taking life outside of his will to do so. Job 12:10 In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind.

Our country is headed to civil war, to anarchy, to some kind of change on such a large scale, that we will not be the nation we were founded on in the very near future. History is being written, and the pages are turning on another great nation that falls, for future generations that will read of us and hopefully learn from our mistakes. We have lost what we stood for, lost the spine to stand for truth, lost the Biblical conviction that made us great, and God is beginning his judgement of sin upon us. We will be like an Old Testament sin judgement, of a Sodom and Gomorrah I fear, for the God whom I fear will not tarry, but return with his sword to claim those who love him, and smite those don’t, those who have rejected the laws of the Bible under any ruse, for God knows their hearts, and we all will answer one Day for all that we have done in this life; that Day is the next time Jesus returns, Judgement Day. Philippians 2:10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

The good news you ask? You can support abortion, may have even had an abortion, and still go to Heaven. There is nothing you have ever done, no evil that cannot be forgiven, nothing, not even murder, that Jesus will not welcome you with open arms into eternal paradise. That sting you feel deep within you, that is God’s tug to repent of your sin. That pain you feel inside is God calling you, him saying to clear your conscious of sin, the repent and turn from sin, and to know you are forgiven. Jesus Christ paid the price due to Heaven, to gain access into a place so holy, you must be holy to even enter. Jesus came and lived a sinless life, died a painful death, and rose from death, defeating it’s power, and provides you the same power when you believe he did what you cannot do, even through religion. He wants you to live your life here for him, to be his disciple, to stand for truth, to witness of his love and forgiveness to others, to stand where others lie down, to be a light in a very dark world. Jesus wants to call you his disciple, his friend. His disciples and friends would never support abortion……

Writing it Down

1 John 1:1 That which as from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the “Word of life- 2 the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us- 3 that which we have seen, and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. 4 And these things we write to you that your joy may be full.

God used a new friend of mine, a brother in Christ with similar testimonies, to a new style of online ministry. He has been writing out the Bible, slowing down for memorization and meditation, and I felt a similar tug. Much of my writing ministry I have always “cut and pasted” my scripture passages into my messages, rarely slowing down to write or type them out myself. With my memory problems, this became a natural transition to help me, and I felt God tugging me into a brief exposition and example, such a way as I have written close to the last 10 years I guess. My “style” of writing is a gift from God, not one to go typically deep, but one of simplistic understanding of scripture, one from an unedjumicated country boy with a heart for Jesus. I searched this morning “write these,” and I was led to 1 John 2:1 My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. I read most of 1 John this morning.

If you look at the first three passages in the above text, John is saying, “I was there. I am a first hand witness to all you have heard about this Jesus Christ. I was with him during so much of his ministry, his miracles, his death and resurrection; I was there.” John could give a first hand account to the power of God through the Son of God to anyone who questioned what they had heard. This was not a time of instant news, of global transparency, of news manipulation, this was a time of stories getting twisted being passed from one person to the other. No story is told the same exact way twice, so the weight of first hand accounts, of witnesses, presents the greatest truths. Can you imagine how powerfully John would have effected people who questioned Jesus; the awe of John’s first hand account would have likely bread great faith that the Bible does not give account of those early disciples God used through John.

John, by the prompting of the Holy Spirit, began to write these things down. Just as he says in the above passages, the “why” he wrote these things down. He was writing for our benefit, for a first hand account of the one whom Jesus loved. John had likely the most special relationship with Jesus, one born of great love for one another. I truly believe that was what made John special, his heart of love emulated Christ. When you read any of his writings, the central theme is Jesus and love. We have much to learn from John about both, and their centrality upon one another; you cannot have one without the other.

What could you learn from just these couple passages in 1 John? What about your accounts of Jesus’ work in your life? What about your testimony of when you recognized your need for the salvation only He can provide? Have you ever written down your testimony, or other times you could testify of God working in your life? How else could you remember, and how else could you encourage others to see their need for God? Jesus wants to use you, and it can begin with writing it down.

Faith vs Anxiety

Job 12:10 In whose hand is the life of every living thing, And the breath of all mankind?

Anxious thoughts fill my mind
At the hours before dawn
What could possibly cause the anxiety
The worlds worries have not drawn.

The first breaths awake for the day
The tightening of the chest
I know the Lord has allowed it
I know the Lord knows what is best.

Was there a war in my dreams
Was I fighting an enemy within
Is it worldly stress from my life
Is it a struggle with sin?

Job struggled on an incredible scale
Tormented to failure if he would
Satan meant to destroy his faith
God knew it would work out for good.

Job’s story is one of great faith
His plight was not as it seems
He was an example of complete faith
When we know behind the schemes.

God knew Satan’s plan all along
He knew he would ultimately fail
God knew this story of great faith
Would encourage all He would tell.

When you struggle with anxiety
Which way do you turn for aid
Do you run to numbing ways
Or go to from Whom you were made?

The anxiety we all face some days
Shows us our need for God each one
Our stories have many layers
And our chapters are not done.

Seek God in your struggles each day
Seek him with all your heart
For your faith in his sovereignty
You understand he will not depart.

Broken but Bestowed

Psalm 51:10-13 Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. 11 Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, And uphold me by Your generous Spirit. 13 Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, And sinners shall be converted to You.

I love how God works; I don’t understand it, sometimes struggle with his higher ways than mine, but even in the struggles he will open your mind to truths, well, when it is the best time I guess. It is rarely when we think we are ready for it, typically not how we expect it, and likely something inside of us is “wowed” by it. How could we call him our God, if we were on any scale able to figure him out? So many times even in our struggles, on a struggle of small or incredible scale, God is behind the scenes working it for his good. Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. The little bit of understanding you have been granted of that passage, speaks to your faith in God’s sovereignty, of his control over the details of your life, blended with free-will that we cannot comprehend, but we walk in the faith of the unseen power of him. (Hebrews 11:1)

I have been criticized for my openness to share of my struggles, of my battles with anxiety and depression. I have been told of how I need to find the joy in life, told I don’t understand God, or even the opposing view of haughty, thinking I am greater than thou. I have always been an open book since the Lord got ahold of my heart, sharing my journey on every cycle of life, filtered through my faith. My plea on any scale is to point you to your need for Jesus, to shun religion and pursue Jesus Christ daily by your hearts pursuit of him in prayer and his Word. I grew up in religion, rebelled against it, and now see the power Satan has in those that think they are saved by it. So many check Sunday’s box of duty, yet never approach Christ until that hour again next week. So many think religion saves, but it kills, and Jesus made it clear from his mouth. Matthew 9:13 But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.” Simply stated Jesus wants your heart of love, not your acts of religious duty or sacrifices.

This morning as I prayed, I prayed about my brokenness in many ways, which lead me to searching God’s Word on it, which lead to Psalm 51 (read it). I have always related to David, his struggles with great sins, the burden he carried of them, but also his heart for God through his struggles of life. In all that David faced, he sought God. In all David battled, he poured out his heart to God openly through the Psalm writing for us to be blessed by reading of his struggles filtered through his faith too. As I continued to study, it lead me to Matthew, and it lead me to see how God just wanted my heart just as David; of how Jesus said he desired one’s heart of love more than acts of religion. My heart for you, is to give your heart to Him. For the rest of your days this side of heaven, may you filter your life through your faith in Christ, testifying of his grace and mercy he bestowed upon such a sinner as you, and is available to all.