Luke 6:12-26

S-  And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said:
 “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.
 “Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you shall be satisfied.
 “Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.
 “Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man! Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven; for so their fathers did to the prophets.
(Luke 6:20-23 ESV)

O- 1) I never noticed before that Jesus spent the whole night in prayer.  I am much more likely to bemoan the fact that I have no quiet time to spend in prayer than to give up a night of sleep.  Jesus spent the night in prayer before choosing the disciples.  While staying up every night to pray would be foolish, making that type of sacrifice before big decisions seems very wise.
2) I found it very interesting that Jesus chose to teach on the beatitudes in the midst of craziness.  I have read this passage many times and had not noticed that before either.  When things in our family get crazy, I minimize what we need to do and survive until a quieter moment.  Jesus didn't.  He chose a crazy moment to teach about what to do when things get crazy.
3) I have been feeling so blessed lately.  While I am very aware of things in my life that I am thankful for, the feeling of blessing has gone beyond that and I have struggled to put it into words.  Today, it all clicked together in my mind (here's hoping it comes out in words).  Simply, the things we think of as blessings are not the only blessings.  God blesses us with SO MANY things--comfortable and not so much.  For example: God has blessed me with three healthy, intelligent and capable children.  I am thankful for them.  He has also blessed me with the opportunity to learn patience, self-control, service and sacrifice as I care for them.  I choose to be thankful for that blessing as well even though it makes me want to pull my hair out some days.  I hate that this sounds so cheap and corny because it is so real to me right now.  I am so thankful for everything God has given me--comfortable and challenging right now.  It is great to be praised, comfortable, wealthy, happy, etc., but the richness of life is not found in those times.  It is the crazy, overwhelming times where the deepest and most fulfilling blessings are eventually found.

A- 1) I am convicted with how rarely I make sacrifices of things I feel entitled to.  This would include sleep, food and rest.  My children have challenged those things over the years, but I usually only give them up when I have to--on very rare occasions.
2) I need to embrace the crazy times.  Not everything needs to be neat, tidy and under control in order to function or grow.

P- Praying for hurting friends right now who are searching for meaning in the midst of another hurtful time.  Praying that they would feel the presence of God, embrace the closeness hurtful times bring, and that polka dots of grace would appear through conversations and growth as God would bring it to them. Praying for wisdom in dealing with the boys.  Praying for a heart that gives even when it hurts.