Difference makers are those who intentionally make an effort to make someone else's life better. One of the many ways I can make a positive impact on someone else is through my words. Psychologists tell us that the things we choose to say to or about someone can have a significant effect on their emotional (and sometimes even physical) health. The book of Proverbs tells us that our words have the "power of life and death." So how do I get better at making a difference with my words? And how can I make sure that my words are promoting "life" in someone else?

A difference maker is someone who chooses to take advantage of an opportunity to make an impact in the lives of others. We all have the potential to be difference makers, because we are all presented on a regular basis with opportunities to make a positive impact in someone else's life. God has always used a variety of different people to make a difference in this world - some of those difference makers are well-known, and some of them operated "under the radar." We're going to discover together who some of these difference makers were, what it takes to be a difference maker, and how to intentionally step into the opportunities to make a positive impact in our church, in our families, and in our community.

None of us want to be mistreated, but we especially don't want people criticizing us or treating us badly for doing the right thing. And yet Jesus says in Matthew 5 that I am blessed, that God is doing some positive things in my life when people are "persecuting" me, especially when I'm doing good things. Does it make sense to feel blessed when other people are hurting me or talking bad about me behind my back or even to my face? What does it really mean to be persecuted? And how can I learn to see persecution as a positive?

Conflicts have been a common part of life seemingly since the beginning of time. With all the access we have now to social media platforms, streaming content, and podcasts, it seems that we have more arguments and debates and divisiveness today than at any other time in our history. And yet in Matthew 5, Jesus calls us to be "peacemakers." As a matter of fact, He says we are blessed when we are instrumental in making peace. But who is He talking about making peace with? And how do I go about becoming a peacemaker?

Fifty years ago Neil Young said he was searching for a "Heart of Gold." Ten years later Bruce Springsteen said everybody's got a "Hungry Heart." In Matthew 5, Jesus said that I am truly blessed when I have a "pure heart." But what does it look like to have a pure heart? And how do I get better at keeping my heart pure?

It's always nice when someone does something kind for us - especially when that act of kindness is unexpected or maybe even undeserved. It also makes us feel good to be treated with compassion or to be forgiven when we've done something bothersome or hurtful to someone else. Those are times when we feel blessed because someone has gone out of their way to show us mercy. Jesus puts a twist on this concept in Matthew 5 when he says that it's the ones who show mercy, the ones who do the forgiving, the ones who do something kind for someone else - those are the people that are actually "blessed." So why is it a blessing to me to BE a blessing to someone else? And how do I know whether or not I'm actually in the habit of showing mercy to others?

What am I hungry for? This isn't about going to the kitchen and getting a snack or spending 15 minutes trying to decide what restaurant I want to go to. What are some of the other less tangible things I hunger for? Is it a successful career? Is it a relationship? Is it an addiction? Is it freedom from anxiety and stress? In Matthew 5, Jesus says there's something I need to hunger and thirst for, something I need to pursue. And it's probably not what society would say is worth the pursuit. So what is it? And why is it worth me chasing after it?

Continuing our #Blessed series as Jesus states in Matthew 5:5 that meekness is a key to blessing. It would seem that Jesus values the weak, downtrodden, and gentle in society more than the boisterous power-hungry kings of that day. But weakness isn't something that was valued in Jesus' culture OR ours, so what are we to do with something so upside down? How can weakness become strength? And how does strength become controlled?

Can you imagine posting a pic on social media of yourself or someone else in pain and then adding the caption "#Blessed"? Sounds ridiculous, right? One of the last things that comes to mind when we're hurting, when we're in pain, when we're grieving is how blessed we are. And yet, that's exactly what Jesus says - I'm blessed when I'm in mourning. How can mourning be a good thing? And if it really is a good thing, how do I get better at seeing the blessing when I'm hurting?

We live in a culture that sometimes subtly, sometimes blatantly encourages us to have the most, to be the best, to have more than someone else. We're the most "blessed" when we have the most things, the most titles, the most likes, the most followers. Jesus says in Matthew 5 that when I'm at my least, when I'm empty, when I'm "poor" - that's when I'm truly "blessed." What does it mean to be "poor in spirit"? And why would that lead me to actually feel blessed?