Daily Bible Reading with DragoNate #141

Let the Dead Bury Their Dead

Matthew 8

I pray blessings on you as you read.

(v. 21-22) "Another disciple said to him, 'Lord, first let me go and bury my father.' But Jesus told him, 'Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.' "

My Thoughts

What does Jesus mean to 'let the dead bury their own dead?' It doesn't make sense! Dead people can't do anything, let alone bury other dead people. They are not alive anymore; that's what 'dead' means, right? To not be alive?

Okay, so you have probably guessed or thought or realized by now that Jesus isn't necessarily speaking completely literally. I mean He is, but He's kinda not at the same time. Don't get lost on me. You remember about eternal life right? Also about being alive in Christ and dead in sin? Well, I believe this is more what Jesus is talking about.

He is referring to those who are dead in Him to bury their own dead. Those who are alive in Jesus have eternal life, so even when they die physically, they are not really dead. So why bury someone who isn't dead? Exactly, there is no need to because you don't bury living people.

Those who are alive in Jesus are dead in sin and they have eternal life with Jesus. Those who do not have eternal life are not alive in Jesus when they die, they die. So when Jesus says, "Follow me , and let the dead bury their own dead." He is saying the word 'dead' twice, but both have a different meaning.

The first time He says it, 'dead' refers to those who are dead in Him and do not have eternal life. The second time, 'dead' refers to someone who has become not alive at all. Those who are alive in Jesus have no need to be 'buried' when they die. I also believe that the word 'bury' used here doesn't necessarily mean to put in an actual grave, because it doesn't make sense not to, really.

I believe that bury here means more to forget or put completely behind you. If someone dies and they are not buried in the ground, it will be very unpleasant. That is why I think of this.

Prayer Time

Now you talk to God about what you read, and you can even read this chapter of the Bible for yourself before you do.

Let me know your thoughts on this reading as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read, I pray that what you have read blesses and inspires you! Godbless!

Daily Bible Reading with DragoNate #139

Living Among Negativity

Isaiah 3

I pray blessings on you as you read.

(v. 8) "Jerusalem has stumbled, and Judah has fallen, because what they say and what they do is against the LORD. They are defiant in his honored presence." (v. 10-11) "Tell the righteous that blessings will come to them. They will taste the fruit of their labor. How horrible it will be for the wicked! Disaster will strike them. What they have done will be done to them."

My Thoughts

Do you ever find it hard just to live around other people? There are bullies, harassers, liars, cheaters, people who say bad or hurtful words often. People seem to always be against each other or fighting a lot. It's hard to go one day without being around something negative.

As followers of Christ, we face opposition. Now, I'm not saying we have it harder than others or even than most. We do face opposition to our faith in Christ. Some more so than others, unfortunately, like those who are being attacked and killed by other extremist groups. Kids who go to church and believe in God are sometimes bullied at school because of it.

Don't let these truths and events scare you or worse, cause you to forsake God. Remember that we have nothing to fear if we have God on our side. If you believe that, then it is absolutely true. Stand firm in your faith. Even though others' words and deeds are against God, we do not have to follow them or be afraid of them.

God may use us to get through to those who don't believe, even if we don't ever speak to them or preach. How we live our lives for others to see can be more than enough for God to use. Live a life of Christ in yourself, and people will notice it.

As verse 10 says, if we stay true to God, our efforts in doing so and in what we do for God will not be in vain. We will reap the rewards of holding on to Christ. That reward is eternal life with Him. Do not let anyone discourage you from following Christ because, as verse 11 says, those who are against God will receive in return what they have done and they will be destroyed. This life is nothing compared to the next. 

Prayer Time

Now you talk to God about what you read, and you can even read this chapter of the Bible for yourself before you do.

Let me know your thoughts on this reading as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read, I pray that what you have read blesses and inspires you! Godbless!

Daily Bible Reading with DragoNate #122

A Time for Everything

Ecclesiastes 3

I pray blessings on you as you read.

(v. 1-8) "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace."

My Thoughts

There really is a time for everything. When you were a kid, or maybe you are actually a kid now, have you ever wished that you were older so that you could certain things like drive or date or work or not have to go to school anymore? I did, and I'm pretty sure everyone does at some point. When we are young, we wish to be older and when we are old, we wish to be younger.

What we need to do instead is teach our children to enjoy their lives now and make the most of it while they are young so that when they get older, they don't have any regrets. We should make the most of our lives at the present time so that we don't wish to be young again because "I should've done this." or "I should've done that."

When you are young, there are things for you to do at that time, and you will eventually, inevitably, get older. You can wait until you get older to do grown-up things. Do kid things now. When you are old(er), there are things for you to do then too. There's no shame in having fun and being slightly childish sometimes or playing games. In fact, it's God to do so, good to do so and healthy to do so. If you stop having fun and you stop enjoying life, that is when you die. Not literally, obviously.

It is never too late to start doing something that you want to do. If there is something that you have wanted to do for a long time, start on it now, however old you are, because if you never do, you will eventually be unable to. Oh, and don't worry about the "I should've done this sooner. Maybe then..." stuff. Those thoughts may come, but don't entertain them because it will make you feel bad or depressed or something. Just focus on the now and enjoy every minute and every part of it.

Prayer Time

Now you talk to God about what you read, and you can even read this chapter of the Bible for yourself before you do.

Let me know your thoughts on this reading as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read, I pray that what you have read blesses and inspires you! Godbless!

Daily Bible Reading with DragoNate #117

Your Life Has Meaning

Ecclesiastes 12

I pray blessings on you as you read.

(v. 13-14) "Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgement, including every hidden things, whether it is good or evil."

My Thoughts

The book of Ecclesiastes was written by Solomon when he was far from God. He was trying to find meaning in life in this time, and he found that nothing gave his life meaning. Neither relationships nor knowledge or money or power or possessions. No accomplishments gave him any meaning because when you die, it is all gone anyway. You can't take any of that with you.

The only meaning he found in life came from God. Once he came back to God, he knew that's where his life had meaning. It is true that when you die, everything you have, have achieved and everything will be gone because you cannot take it with you. What you can take with you is God's love because it is Him that you can go to, if you make that choice.

So if you are far from God, what is the point of doing anything, except for, possibly, having satisfaction temporarily? If you take nothing with you, there isn't really any point, is there? Even if you are close to God, what is the point of a lot of things? Well, you can make an impact on someone in anything you do, and that impact can be positive or negative, but that really depends on you.

Do whatever it is that you do, whether work or school or play, and do it with the love and grace of God. You will make a positive impact on others that way and open the door for God in their lives. Not every choice we make only affects ourselves, but can affect others as well. Some of those choices affect our eternity and the eternity of others.

Don't ever think that it isn't worth doing what you do or that it isn't worth it to do the right thing or especially that it isn't worth living. It is most definitely worth it! God has a purpose for you, you just have to want it and accept it and accept Him and His Son. Your life, no matter what, has meaning. Don't ever think that it doesn't.

Prayer Time

Now you talk to God about what you read, and you can even read this chapter of the Bible for yourself before you do.

Let me know your thoughts on this reading as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read, I pray that what you have read blesses and inspires you! Godbless!

Daily Bible Reading with DragoNate #103

Celebration

2 Samuel 6

I pray blessings on you as you read.

(v. 3) "David, wearing a linen ephod, danced before the Lord with his might, while he and the entire house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of trumpets."

My Thoughts

We all celebrate many different things. Birthdays, Christmas, New Year (both of which just passed) other holidays, our favorite sports teams' wins, and our own personal victories. There's so many things to celebrate and there's so many ways to celebrate! How do you celebrate different things? Do you party, shout, sing, give a gift or a hug or kiss, or dance?

David danced to celebrate the return of the ark of the covenant. Others at that same time were shouting for joy, playing trumpets and also dancing. The point is that celebration is awesome! As we get older, we don't really celebrate our birthdays as much. Even I don't really. I think the reason is that as kids, we are excited to grow up so our birthdays are very important and exciting for us. As we get older, we realize that we are getting closer to old age and eventually death, so we are less excited. We should change that.

Each day we get to live is a blessing from God. Each birthday should remind us of how much closer we are to being in heaven with God, rather than how much closer we are to death. That's why we should still be at least a little bit excited on our birthday and celebrate!

I don't think there is any good reason not to celebrate good things or memorable things that happen in our lives. On my next birthday, I am going to try to remember this and remember to be more excited about it than I was this year. If you really don't want to grow old, then you need to stop thinking about it and not let yourself become old. When you stop laughing and you start getting grumpy about your life and your age, that's when you've gotten old.

Let yourself get excited about things! Get excited about things like a little kid, no matter what your actual age is! Never stop laughing or finding joy and excitement in things and remember to enjoy your life, starting now and going forever. It's not too late to enjoy the rest of your life now.

Prayer Time

Now you talk to God about what you read, and you can even read this chapter of the Bible for yourself before you do.

Let me know your thoughts on this reading as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read, I pray that what you have read blesses and inspires you! Godbless!

Daily Bible Reading with DragoNate #96

Cornerstone

Keystone

Luke 20

I pray blessings on you as you read.

(v. 17) "Jesus looked directly at them and asked, 'Then what is the meaning of that which is written: ' 'The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone'?"

My Thoughts

So I made a mistake and just realized, the day after posting this that it was the keystone that I was actually talking about in this post, not cornerstone. I will leave the verse alone because that is the verse that made me think of all this to begin with, but some changes will be made. The next post after this one will be about Jesus being the Cornerstone.

One of Jesus' many names is 'Cornerstone.' If Jesus was a person and He is called Cornerstone, then we, as people, must be the other stones. Jesus is like a keystone as well. In construction, the cornerstone keystone is the stone that holds all the other stones in place. This is easily seen in an arch. The stone at the top of an arch, right in the middle, is the cornerstone keystone. If that one stone is removed, the entire arch will fall.

Actually, in thinking about it, if we take the arch example, we are each an arch, not part of an arch with each other, per se. Each stone in the arch, our arch, is a part of our own life. There's a great amount of stones representing each part of our lives. Without Jesus, we crumble in on ourselves. We may be able to hold ourselves for a while, or put something in His place, but nothing is as strong and the load will be too much. Only Jesus can hold everything together. 

So Jesus is the Cornerstone Keystone, right at the top of the arch, that holds us, our lives, together. Those who reject Jesus don't realize that, without Him, they will crumble in on themselves. They try everything to hold their lives together, putting whatever they can in Jesus' place at the top, but nothing else is ever enough.

The arch not only has all the good things in our lives, but also the bad. Those bad stones can be removed though, without compromising the entire arch. As long as the cornerstone keystone is not removed, everything will still hold up. I just thought of this now: This is also another visual for putting Jesus at the center of your life. Our life is the arch, with each stone being another aspect of our lives. The cornerstone keystone is at the very top, right in the center. That is Jesus.

Jesus, the Cornerstone Keystone, at the center of the arch, our lives. That sounds really cool to me! What do you think about all that?

Prayer Time

Now you talk to God about what you read, and you can even read this chapter of the Bible for yourself before you do.

Let me know your thoughts on this reading as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read, I pray that what you have read blesses and inspires you! Godbless!

Daily Bible Reading with DragoNate #82

Empty Life Filled

1 Peter 1

I pray blessings on you as you read.

(v. 18-19) "For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect."

My Thoughts

Life without Christ is an empty life. That's really harsh to say,now isn't it? It certainly is the way I feel. I feel that my life would have no meaning if I didn't have Christ, because what would happen when I die? I can't take anything with me, I go out the way I came in, essentially. Jesus is eternal and through Him, I have eternal life. You do as well, through Jesus.

People try to fill their lives with a great number of things. Emotions, people, things, activities, knowledge. The list could probably go on longer. Do any of these things, or anything you can think of that doesn't include Jesus, actually give you lasting joy? Oh, maybe, as long as the things themselves last. Jesus is the only one who can give me lasting joy.

Our lives can only be filled by Christ. No matter how much you try to fill your life with other things, they will never truly give you purpose, they will never fill you to the top. The reason why is because, if you lose any of it, it's gone. All purpose that it gave you, all meaning it had to you, everything to do with it would be lost. It's not possible to lose Jesus though, unless you choose to. Jesus will never leave and because of that, your life will never be empty with Him.

Jesus gives us purpose in life. A far greater purpose than we could ever know without Him. That purpose is to live like Him, join Him in life and in death, and to introduce Him to others so that they can share in all of this. That is my purpose in life and that is what I hope to gain above all.

Prayer Time

Now you talk to God about what you read, and you can even read this chapter of the Bible for yourself before you do.

Let me know your thoughts on this reading as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read, I pray that what you have read blesses and inspires you! Godbless!

Daily Bible Reading with DragoNate #44

Suffering for Doing Good

1 Peter 3

I pray blessings on you as you read.

(v. 9) "Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing." (v. 17) "It is better, if it is God's will, to suffer for doing good than or doing evil."

My Thoughts

If you're going to suffer or doing good things, or the good that you do gets thrown back in your face, then what's the point? Why not just go along with the crowd and not care about trying to good things or trying to be nice to people or help them? There is a very important reason why you don't want to do that. That reason has to do with the kind of suffering you will have to endure.

When we sin; when we do any kind of evil act, not only do we usually end up answering for it here on Earth, but later on, after we die, we will have to answer to God. To suffer at the hands of men is nothing like the kind of suffering you would endure at the hands of God. God has the power to create life, to take life and to restore it, all in an instant. He is the One we should fear more than any other.

What can you possibly endure at the hands of men? Embarrassment, rejection, insult, injury, betrayal. Worse, torture and even death. Why is this a better consequence? These things only affect us as we are alive in this world. Death, obviously, cannot be recovered from, though afterward, when we die, we can spend eternity with God in heaven. If we value a good life over a God life, we will likely spend eternity apart from God. That is not at all what we want.

Even though people may hurt you in someway, always try to be the bigger person. Do not retaliate to them, do not grow spiteful and do not seek vengeance. God does not promise a good life or an easy life, but He promises eternal life. We need only accept His Son Jesus and follow in His ways. Any kind of suffering we face in life should be for Him, just as His suffering on the cross was for us.

No matter what evil you face in life, if you are following God and you are faithful to Him, your suffering is not in vain. You don't have to let people walk all over you; stand up for yourself always, but be respectful and do so with the love of God. By you standing up for yourself in this way, people will see that you are strong, and also that you are respectful and they may just see Jesus in you. Defend yourself for sure, but do not fight back; do not do what they do. Let your words and your actions in those situations show who you are in Christ.

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Prayer Time

Now you talk to God about what you read, and you can even read this chapter of the Bible for yourself before you do.

Let me know your thoughts on this reading as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read, I pray that what you have read blesses and inspires you! Godbless!