Day 21 Reflection

After reading this Chapter I started to think I am sure during this time things were getting a little tense, obviously Jesus was wearing out His welcome with the religious leaders of the time. They knew that Jesus message was a threat to they way they lived and status the they were looked upon. Jesus new entering in to Jerusalem that He was to fulfill what the Father had asked of Him, Jesus was busy preparing His follower for what was to come and we find that in this Chapter. Two verses stood out to me in that regard the first one was V.13 " This will be your opportunity to bear witness" Jesus is telling them of some of the trials accusations that are to come as the Kingdom is restored upon Jesus Return. Tough times await. What struck me about this verse as well is how many times I miss opportunity to bear witness, to me it is a clear indication that my faith is in need of growth, there are so many times that I do not take advantage of opportunities, what's frustrating is that I can look at myself sometimes and feel like I am at a place spiritually that is Good. I heard a quote "don't trust the confidence of a Man's heart" how true is that in my own life many times. It's is only the Faith I have in Christ that there is any Grace in my own life. V.19 was also another verse that was stuck out to me "By your endurance you will gain your lives" Jesus is speaking this as and encouragement to his followers knowing what many will endure, but I think that we can gather encouragement from this as well from Jesus. Many times in my life I have wanted to think that my being a Christian that life should be easy for me, actually I feel like for me that is just a selfish desire. the Christian life is not about things being made easy, but about who do I have trust in my life. Following Jesus is something to find strength and redemption in, knowing that in the toughest of times there is something to turn too, to find hope in in the hopeless, to release some of life's burdens, because I know what Jesus sacrificed for me, and in that I am forever thankful.