Matthew 7:5 - "You hypocrite! First take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye."

Observation:

Jesus condemned sin. And we condemn sin also, but the sin we must condemn first is the sin of judging others, for it obscures our vision from discerning sin in ourselves. I will never become holy by criticizing others; nor am I brought nearer to God through finding fault.


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I just looked at a bit from the National Weather Service and my forecast at the end of next week is calling for a pretty strong cold front. It's expected to hit the area by next weekend, and we just might see temperatures falling into the 30s for lows.

After looking at that, I got to thinking: Last winter, my area saw temperatures go below 30 just one time. One. All last winter. No ice, no nothing. Didn't kill any bugs. Mother Nature was kind to us and...

“She Meets Herself"

In the ebb and flow of the tides of the soul,

In the rhythmic pulsing of the life’s blood,

In the exquisite grace of the Mother’s blooming,

In the fragile disintegration of the heart’s encasement,

In the annihilating longing for the beloved’s gaze,

In the descent into darkness and the emergence to light,

In the burgeoning fullness of the child’s innocent becoming,...

Luke 1:26,28 - "And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee named Nazareth. And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail thou art highly favored, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women."

WHEN GOD CHOSE TO BRING THE MESSIAH THROUGH THE VIRGIN MARY, HE SENT GABRIEL THE ANGEL TO BRING THE MESSAGE. WHEN THE APOSTLE PAUL WAS ABOUT TO SUFFER SHIPWRECK, AN ANGEL OF THE LORD TOLD HIM WHAT WOULD HAPPEN. ON NUMEROUNS OCCASIONS...

John 3:3 - "Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."

What does it mean to "see" the kingdom of God?

Jesus urged us to do an about-face in our approach to reality because His Kingdom is at hand. He brought His world with Him, and it's within our reach. He wants us to see reality from God's perspective, to learn to live "from" His world "towards"...