During Jesus’ temptation, he used God’s Word to combat Satan. Jesus stayed strong despite his physical weakness and hunger. He endured these tests, went on to sacrifice himself on a cross, and rose, defeating the devil and death once and for all. We too can fight the devil’s attacks using God’s Word and know that our God will not leave us to fend for ourselves.

Even back in the Bible days people didn't always get Jesus' message. A woman in the crowd wanted to bless Mary, the mother of Jesus, but Jesus told her that the blessed are those who believe the word of God and obey it. What we have from Jesus is more important than all of the other earthly things in our lives. So listen to what Jesus says and take it to heart.

God mentions five extrodinary women, both good and bad, in his geneology of Jesus Christ. We can learn from their mistakes, their good attributes, and how God used them to serve a role in the lineage of the Savior. Today, God uses women, and mothers, to serve as Christian role models. Our only job is to allow Christ to work through us, even the times when we do bad things!

Stand firm in the knowledge that no matter how bad our earthly body gets as we age, we will be resurrected by God. Our bodies might be injured, crippled, and disease filled here on earth, but we will be perfect in heaven. This isn't a get out of jail free card though. Our job is to care for our earthly body because it was given to us as a blessing. We are God's temple!

Palm Monday should be a continuation of Palm Sunday. Jesus was praised and worshiped on Palm Sunday for his great miracles. All of the crowds in Jerusalem sang great songs of praise as he rode in on a donkey. Jesus cleared the temple and made it a place for worship again and our lesson is to continue God's praises all the days of the week.

Wow, did Jesus have resistance to his message when he walked the earth as a human. His disciples, family, friends, and neighbors thought he was crazy at times for traveling around telling people to believe and be saved. You can experience that same resistance today, but don't be discouraged. Keep telling others about the saving message of Christ because God will give us perseverance to endure any sort of criticism Satan can dish out.

We can rebel and push back against God's influence in our life, but reality is that we need God and we desperately need those around us to encourage us in our faith. We are blessed to have communities of believers that are able to bring us joy and satisfaction by meeting our spiritual needs. Say yes to God's invitation to jump into a group of Christians and stop pushing back against God.

No earthly possession will go with you into heaven, but the people around you have the potential to be there with you. What can we do to make that happen? We can join the Great Commission and spread the good news of our Savior with everyone we meet. Don't be afraid of the task given to God's children, but be confident that God is always with us.

It would be a scary sight to see a fire above the head of any human being, but that is how God made his presence known at the Pentecost following Jesus' death on the cross. God gave all his believers the ability to speak in tongues and share the saving news of Christ in multiple languages. God does not always make himself as apparently present as he did that Pentecost, but he does tell us that we are all good people who through him can tell others the good news of a Savior. Even if we don't feel as though we have the words to speak we can trust that God will give us the right words at the right time.

We are powered up by God's love and blessing that He showers upon us. But what does he power us to do? Often, we do sinful things, but take a moment to be powered up in the way of the Lord. Reach out to an unbeliever and get out of your comfort zone for a moment. Jesus ascended into Heaven leaving his disciples to teach others the message of salvation. We are Christ's modern day disciples and it's time to get powered up for Jesus!