Do you feel like you’re in a waiting room? This extended shelter in place has caused us to feel like our entire life is on pause. Our perspective may dwell on the current situation, but “the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” As we pray for a fresh perspective, we can see that God is living and active in our life. We can step out of the waiting room and participate in what God is doing around us.

Compassion. This is something that we don’t naturally have. When you look at crowds, what do you see? Does your heart throb with compassion for those that you view? We see an expanse of city, people in a hurry, fancy purses or beat up cars. We typically don’t look beyond that with the eyes of Jesus. A vital relationship with Jesus gives us the compassion towards others that we do not naturally have.

Let’s be civil. Communities and civilizations were built on the matter of being civil with one another. As we devote ourselves to spending time in scripture, it molds how we treat and speak to others. Words can be incredibly damaging. Putting the character of God on display is being slow to speak.

Every single one of us has incalculable value. Justice is a beautiful symptom of a relationship with Jesus. As followers of Jesus, we are encouraged to seek justice. “If you don’t have justice, you don’t have me.”

We were wonderfully and carefully designed by God. God breathed into humanity at the beginning and created them in His image; with a spark of the eternal. Being made in the image of God means that we have a soul. No one lacks this. We were all created equal with relationship and community in mind. How do we live this out?

Who is this Jesus? There are many speculations in culture about who Jesus is. What does scripture say about Him? As we dive into the book of Matthew, we see deeper aspects of Jesus revealed.

We’ve been praying for a cure. The world and those around us are collectively suffering with illness, corruption, and violence. As the symptoms rear in dark ways; we hit our knees. Jesus and his presence is The Cure. Is the presence of Jesus enough for you in your pain?

There is a price to pay. We are given an incredible gift of Grace through Jesus, yet this comes with a call to follow Him. Truly following Jesus goes way beyond showing up to church; it’s sacrificing our worldly desires in order to share the gospel. Being a disciple of Jesus is not about gathering in a building. To be a disciple; we lay down our lives and follow Jesus wholeheartedly.

Miracles are not just ancient myths. The miracles that Jesus did are much different than your typical Superman actions. Jesus reached out and engaged with people who were struggling, even those who had the most dangerous diseases. He did not discriminate against those who were sick or those who were poor, He simply loved them and healed them. In this season more than ever, let us remember and have faith in the healing power of Jesus.

Did you hear that right? As we have walked through Jesus’ sermon on the mount in the book of Matthew, there has been heavy and healing truth to intake. We have a choice how to deal with the information we have been given. Listening to what Jesus has to say and following His words is likened to building our house on a firm foundation, stable and unwavering. As we are under construction, may our foundations be strong!