Day 3 - Unashamed

You Hurt Marys Feelings...
The story where Jesus is told that his mother and brother are wanting to see him and he says that all who put God's word into practice are his mother and brothers has always made me wonder if Mary and his brothers had their feelings hurt.  I understand what Jesus is saying, but if you put yourself in Mary's shoes, don't you think you might be a little distraught, if not jarred, by this comment.  Mary must have had an immense amount of pride for her son.  And to be told that she is no more important to him than others probably cut deep.  Again, I understand what he is saying and I don't think that Jesus should show any special favor to Mary or his brother, but I'd bet she was hurt by this.

Legion
I wish I had a special font for that word... "Legion!!!!"  It would look like cracked, rumbling stone in all CAPS... "LEGION!!!!"  This exorcism is one of my favorites.  What caught my attention this time, though, was the part where the demons "begged Jesus repeatedly not to order them to go into the Abyss."  I took "Abyss" to mean Hell (I could be wrong in this) and found it intriguing that even demons don't want to go to hell!  During my research, I did read that the Abyss is a spiritual and physical, DEEP, HOT place on earth.  So maybe it isn't hell.  And if that's the case, then I guess it makes sense that the demons would rather be out wreaking havoc on the surface of the earth than deep down inside it.  Still, best exorcism in the Bible.

http://www.keyway.ca/htm2003/20030424.htm

Unashamed
Twice during today's readings Jesus mentions that we should not be ashamed of our belief in Christ. In both passages he basically says if you are ashamed of me (or disown me), then I will be ashamed of you (or disown you) when you come before the angels of God.  I can remember growing up not being very public with my faith.  In school, it didn't seem to be the "popular" thing to do.  I also didn't have a place like Journey where students had a place to gather with other believers and be encouraged and lifted up by them and the staff.  I often wonder if I was connected to a place like that, if my teen age years might have been different.  Regardless, my faith is strong now and I have no problems with being public about my faith.  At my work, I have sort of become known as the "religious guy" and this doesn't bother me in the slightest.  I try hard to be a good witness and to shine the light for all to see.  I'm not perfect at it, but I'm trying.

A Little Harsh
Question, when Jesus says to his disciples "You unbelieving and perverse generation, how long shall I stay with you and put up with you?", do you think it's a little harsh.  It seems out of character for Jesus to say something like this.

Burn 'em Down!!!
"Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?"  First of all, did the disciples really believe that THEY could call down fire from heaven?  Second, I think it's funny that these men are still holding onto the old beliefs of how God was in the Old Testament instead of learning from the example that Jesus is setting right there before their eyes.  Jesus is healing, casting out demons and teaching, not burning down towns.  I wonder what exactly Jesus did to "rebuke" them?  Maybe he just turned away from them, looked down and shook his head.

Few Things Are Needed
The story in the reading today where a woman, Martha, asks Jesus to tell her sister Mary to help her make preparations instead of sitting at his feet listening to what he says reminds me a little of my wife.  My wife is always fitting time in to clean this, or organize that, or pick up this, or put the dishes away instead of doing what needs to be done at the time.  For example, we could be 20 minutes late for church and she'll be cleaning up instead of putting her shoes on or helping with getting the kids ready so we can leave.  It just seems like she puts such a high emphasis on cleaning that it overtakes other things in her life.  Ask her.  She'll admit to it.

Thoughts AND Actions
Luke 11:34-36 jumped off the page for me today.  "When your eyes are healthy, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are unhealthy, your body also is full of darkness."  To me, this was speaking of sinful thoughts that are a result of what the eye sees.  Coveting being the prime example of this.  Wanting what others have, or fantasizing about what others have, leads to an unhealthy eye.  In today's world of high speed media and advertising everywhere, I believe this is a big problem for most people.  We must remember this and try our hardest to not only keep our actions blameless, but also our thoughts.

The Rich, with a Qualifier!
I found another quote from Jesus that speaks about the rich (indirectly), but this time with a qualifier.  This time he says "This is how it will be with those who store up things for themselves but are not rich toward God."  So in this quote, it's okay to "store up things" as long as you are "rich toward God".  You might find it odd that I'm focusing so much on these comments about the rich, but they have just struck me as odd and I'm trying to understand.  So I'll continue to journal about these as I come across them.

Wrap It Up!!
Another good day of reading, but I think I'm wearing down from waking up at 5am.  I'm going to sleep in tomorrow and try to do my reading during my lunch hour instead of first thing in the morning.  Maybe if I can sleep in one day, I'll feel better about getting up early on Friday.  I might also be coming down with a sinus infection or my allergies are just acting up alot.  I haven't felt tip-top this week.  However, more Luke tomorrow.  I'm loving the dialogue we're having in the Google Group too.  These 40 days are going to be a lot of fun.