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This week we were challenged with the question: What is the meaning of life? I am constantly surrounded by the American Dream. People that don’t need anything, but they’re still missing something and few have figured it out. They have the houses. The cars. The vacations. The trophy wife. Everything. So what’s missing? For as long as I can remember I have asked people that are older than me: What do you wish you knew in your twenty’s that you know now? When I started asking that my intentions were to get some insight on how to become successful faster. The funny thing is that the answers were never that. The majority of them looked something like this: Spend more time with family. Spend more time in prayer. Chase after my dreams instead of money. Etc, etc. Not once was I taught to do whatever it takes to fulfill the American Dream. So what is the meaning of life? First you need to look at God. The Creator of life. God is perfect. His being is flawless and His glory is indescribable. The most selfless thing that He could have done was to create mankind in order to enjoy His glory along with Him. So that’s what He did. You and I were created to love and to be loved. To constantly live in joy. To never be sick. To be provided with our every desires because every desire would be perfect and holy. Something happened in a garden way back when. The first man and woman to be created gave into temptation and because of that there has been a block between God and mankind every since. Satan temporarily won. Or so he thought. Ever since then, things changed. Life is now different from the original intent. But we work with what we’ve got. It is now our job to bring heaven to earth every day until the time comes when God collides the two so His people are able to enjoy life the way it was meant to be. That means loving those around you, even your enemies. That means loving God and thanking Him for loving you. That means serving people without expecting anything in return. That means being joyous even when your circumstances choose differently. That means looking at the life of Jesus and doing your best to mimic his every move. You see, to me, the meaning of life is simple. It’s about bringing heaven to earth now for an eternal enjoyment later. The cool thing about life is that you choose your own destiny. I choose eternity in heaven. You can too. Choose wisely, my friends. Z
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As I was getting dressed this morning I put on my necklace just as I do every day. It's a cross on a 30-inch chain that I got with my mom before making this journey out here. I dig it. Normally I just throw it around my neck, but this morning things were different. I sat and thought about it for a second due to the time of year. This one symbol represents our entire religion. That's pretty crazy because in my opinion it isn't the best one we could have chosen. There is something even more amazing than the cross. An empty cave. Wearing an empty cave around our necks instead of a cross isn't as good of a marketing campaign though. I agree. But that's what we should be celebrating, right? If we stop the story at the cross then Jesus was just a good man or a prophet. Not the Son of God. The exact same view that every other religion holds of him. BUT good thing for us, it doesn't stop there! Jesus died and rose again. He is our SAVIOR, the MESSIAH, and he has RISEN from the dead. Everything that he spoke of while on earth can now be believed in because of his rising. It's the rising and ascending into Heaven that call for celebration. So if you celebrate Easter or any of the three feasts or are just curious as to what this is all about this weekend, I pray that you all come to a new understanding of what Jesus did and how that should impact your life. The resurrection proves that God is real because He has power over everything, even death. He is ALL powerful. Now that's something to celebrate! Have an awesome weekend everybody! Let me know if you need anything. Z
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I have loved and I have been loved. I've made bad decisions and I've made good ones. I have broken hearts and I have had my heart broken. A lot of my childhood was spent with a group of four sisters that lived down the street from me. We were all within five years of each other so I witnessed the ups and downs and everything in between that girls go through at different stages of life. Because of that, I have always felt like I understood women far better than guys. So ever since I was younger I knew how to play the game. Mix that with ten years of being a waiter and I've learned what women want before they even have to ask for it. That turns into far more of a problem than a blessing when it comes to relationships that don't have God at the center of them. This week we studied Song of Songs. It's a beautiful poem that displays intimacy and true companionship from a Godly perspective. It shows a dance among partners between pursuing and being pursued. I believe that it's a country girl writing the book as she contrasts her relationship with King Solomon's. The dude was getting married to his 60th wife at the time, not to mention he had 80 concubines. What society was telling her was right didn't look anything like the true intimacy that was associated with a Godly relationship. How is that any different today? While the media shows what is "acceptable" in relationships and how a couple is supposed to function in their eyes, how are Christians called to act? The sad truth is that many times you can't tell the difference between the two. Many times we look at Solomon's 60th bride and we believe the hype that that's how we are supposed to live as well. In reality, we are called to be holy. To be set apart. When Gal and I began dating we decided to always bring everything before God first and foremost. If you love someone you should care more about whether or not you are the best person for them than to be selfish with it and make decisions based on emotions. So every decision that we make is based on God's will and the respect of each other. Focusing on God together, as well as individually, is by far the most important thing that you could ever do with your partner. It changes everything. I'm not an expert on relationships, but I'm confident in what the bible says about them and I'm even more confident in my God. Let me know if you need anything this week! Z
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Sometimes I wish it was easier to follow God. Give me a few rules to follow and let me do my own thing. Do you know how much easier that would be? Seriously. But if it were easy then everyone would do it. The sad thing is that many Christians think that's the case. Somewhere down the line they have turned a narrative into a ten step program. A "Get Rich Quick" manual. The crazy thing that I have found after studying the bible intensively over the last 6 months is that there is not one spot in all of scripture that does that. There isn't a checklist or a plan to follow. It's just not there. So how are we supposed to know what to do then? You see, the bible is full of stories. It's a book about the relationship between God and Man. It shows us the nature of Man and how God responds to it. It shows us that people back then were just as messed up, if not even more than, today. It was designed for interpretation. Designed so that we can put ourselves into their situations and see how God's hand can be upon each and every one of our lives today. This week we studied 1&2 Samuel. They are books that show the introduction of the monarchy, the fall of King Saul, and the rise of King David. Most importantly they show God working in the midst in order for His will to be done. One of my favorite people in history is King David. He was THE man. He was the only man in the bible that was considered to be "a man after God's own heart", which just so happens to be the greatest title you could ever be given. Come on. Give me that. King David was the whole package for reasons that society may not focus on, but God sure does. He trusted God and had unstoppable faith. He was courageous. He looked out for other people. He knew how to repent. He learned from his mistakes. He continually worshipped God throughout the day. What it means to be a man has everything to do with God in your life. The cool thing about studying his life all week was that David messed up. He wasn't perfect at all. He messed up so bad that he should have been put to death. But that wasn't God's plan for his life. No matter how much you mess up, you're never in too deep for God to use you for His plan. As much as the bible isn't a ten step program for how to live life, it does give us people to model our lives after. David is one of those people for me. Who do you model yours after? Z
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You want to know what one of my biggest pet-peeves is? Normality. The fact that so many people I talk to throughout the week truly believe that they are just "normal" and don't have anything special to bring to the table. That is a complete and utter lie that was put in your brain somewhere down the line and I wish more than anything that I could have altered the situation for you. You are not "normal" at all. God created you to be set apart from those around you no matter how much you fit in and fall under the radar. You. Are. Special. Far more special than you could imagine. This week we studied Ruth. It's a small, four chapter book that is surrounded by action-packed stories involving the great leaders of Israel's birth. It's light. It's refreshing. It takes the obedience of a poor widow and shows that even her story was needed in the grand scheme of things. This book shows how God used an "outsider" of the time to be the great-grandmother of King David and an ancestor of Jesus. Those aren't titles to mess around with. If it weren't for Ruth, the majority of our beliefs would have run a far less perfect course. God is intentional with everything He does. He was intentional when He put each of those passions and dreams into your heart. He was intentional when He created you. God uses the most unqualified people for the biggest tasks. That's just the way He works. So no matter how worthless you may think you are, God wants you to know that you are worth it. He didn't make a mistake with you. He created you for excellence. As you move forward this week, I pray that all of you come to the realization that you count more than you could ever know. That God wants to use you in great and amazing ways. That you weren't created to just fit in. You are here, alive, for a reason. Own your uniqueness. Z
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This past week I was chatting with the guys in my house one night and we were thinking back to the first week of school when we went around telling everybody why we were here. My plan from the beginning was to build a solid foundation in my faith in order to actually know God and His heart instead of just calling myself a Christian like so many American's do today. (Just an FYI: Calling yourself a Christian doesn't mean you are saved. You need a relationship, not a title.) This week wraps up the study of Joshua. It's a book that goes through the conquest of an area called Canaan where God promised his people they would reside almost 500 years earlier. This is the Promised Land. The land flowing with milk and honey. The biggest blessing to the nation of Israel. Ever. It was their foundation. Their building blocks. Everything that was to come was built out of this land that God blessed them with. The journey there wasn't an easy one and they messed up many times, but their obedience at the end resulted in a massive blessing. God loves blessing His people. If you love Him and are obedient, He will bless you. That's just the way it goes. I'm not talking about new cars, a big house, and an early retirement. I'm talking about giving you peace, providing for your needs (not your wants), relationships, and the ability to love others the way God loves them. He has been rocking me lately with how much He truly loves His people. All God asks for in return is that they/we love Him back. When you do…wow…He is so faithful and blesses you tenfold. My obedience to embarking on this journey has led me to receive more blessings than I could list. He has given me irreplaceable friendships, an amazing girlfriend, and a faith that's worth dying for, just to name a few. Every single day I get to see Him move. Every single day I get to fall more in love with Him. This. Is. My Promised Land. My whole life has been changed out here and I still have four months. As excited as I am to see all of you when I get home, I'm taking advantage of this opportunity because it is truly a once in a lifetime experience. Thank you for all of your support. Let me know if you need anything this week! Z
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You can look, but you can't touch. As you know, I have a very entrepreneurial spirit. I've had successes and I've had a lot of failures. That's just the way life goes. I think Thomas Edison and I would be friends. He said, "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." Amen. In the past, every time that I would begin working on a new business idea I would go all in. There was no looking back. I would eat, sleep, and breathe my projects. My lifestyle was my work. I know, that sounds pretty bad, but I'm just very passionate and will do anything to make them a success. Moses was also a hard worker and was passionate about God's plan for His people. He was used in order to bring the Hebrews out of slavery and then to deliver them into the Promised Land that God was blessing them with. He was the vessel used by God to build the entire nation of Israel. What an honor! How cool would that be?! The sad thing for Moses though is that once they got to the Promised Land, he was not allowed to enter in with the rest of the group. God had been molding him and working through him for the past 80 years, but he wasn't able to enjoy what he had been working toward. That sounds like the biggest bummer to ever come his way if you ask me. How would you handle that? Working almost your entire life for God and not being able to experience the earthly blessing. That would be tough! But would it really? Moses knew God. He spent more time with Him than anybody else. The only other person that even compared to Moses was Jesus and that was 1400 years later. So is just having God enough? That really got me thinking about my own work and how focused I get on the end result when in reality God is around me at all times and that is far more than I could ever ask for. I can get so caught up in the physical that I lose sight of the spiritual. That's one reason why I've loved being out here. My only focus is on God and His plan for my life. No other distractions. Just my relationship with Him. And that's the most important thing that we could pursue every day because His plan for your life is far greater than you could ever imagine. It's not about being blessed with your own version of the Promised Land, it's about daily falling more in love with Jesus. I'm praying for all of you this week. Let me know if you need anything! Z
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This week we studied the book of Exodus. Obviously this book hit home for me because my dad's film Patterns of Evidence: The Exodus had its debut two weeks ago and that film has been a part of my life for the last decade. So, yeah. It was a good week. My favorite story in the book is when God uses Moses to part the Red Sea. Two seconds before God intervened, Moses was trapped. Stuck. Didn't have a backup plan. Or a way out for that matter. What a bad spot to be in, huh?! Think about it: You just led 2 million people out of Egypt because God told you to. They barely know who you are, but are along for the ride because it was better than being slaves. Then God hardens Pharaoh's heart and he sends out his army to bring them back into slavery. And you are essentially responsible for all of it. Not to mention that there is a sea on the other side of your crew. There is literally no way out. If all of that didn't happen though, the story wouldn't have been as good and they could have just kept on going towards the Promised Land by themselves. Without Gods help. Have any of you ever had a Red Sea situation in your life? Where there is no way out but up? I believe that God allows those situations to take place on purpose. He lets us dig ourselves so deep that the only way out of it is if He steps in and performs a miracle. Because if He didn't then your story would be boring. And God LOVES good stories. He wants all of you to live one out. A story that stands out from the pack. A story that is so miraculous, it'd be impossible for God NOT to have been involved. A story that displays God-sized dreams and their results. That's the type of story that I want to live. Normal is boring. Put me in front of that Red Sea and watch what God can do. I challenge all of you to dream way bigger than normal this year. To dream dreams that call for Gods intervention. It's relying on Him that will leave the most impact. Let me know if anybody needs some motivation this week. I got you. Z
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This week we studied the book of Genesis. It's the first book in the bible and it goes through everything that happened from Creation to the Fall of Man to Noah's Ark to Joseph and his multi-colored coat. You know, the stories that you hear at church as a kid.
When you really spend time diving into those odd stories from Sunday School though, the book itself begins to come alive.
It's poetic. It's narrative. It's all over the board, yet so complex. It shows God's hand upon everything from the beginning and displays his mercy/generosity/love for His people. In each story you see him being a God of second chances. A God that takes instances where people mess up and uses them for good.
I used to be a firm believer in the statement "everything happens for a reason". I'm not anymore. I do believe that God can and will use everything for a reason though. Good or bad as long as you let Him.
The fact that God gives us the ability to choose to love Him also allows for evil to step in and distort our lives. The devil is very real and very interested in pulling you away from God in any way that he can. But the good news is that God wins in the end. Nothing can overpower God so He can use everything that happens to you for His glory.
He didn't put you through your partying phase and pill addiction. He didn't put you through the pain of your divorce. He didn't put you through the suffering from your parent passing away. That's not in His character, which means it wasn't from Him. What He can do though is flip that experience and use it in remarkable ways. He's so talented He can take any junk and mold it into something beautiful.
So, no matter what you've done in the past, God is a God of second chances. You are never too far away from Him to let Him work into your life and change things for the better. He loves you and truly does care about you.
Let me know if you need anything this week!
Z
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This past week we finished up studying the New Testament. It was a wild ride and I'm sad to see it go, but I'm also really looking forward to beginning our second and final adventure: The Old Testament. For those of you that don't know, the New Testament is the back 1/3 of the bible. It's where Jesus steps in, fulfilling the old covenant that God had made with man. The Old Testament is the first 2/3 of the bible and that is the Hebrew Scriptures. The first five books together (the torah) is Jewish Law. This week I've had a few conversations that have made me really appreciate my upbringing. Side note: First thing you need to realize is that Jesus was Jewish. He was born a Jew and he died a Jew. What makes Christianity what it is, is that we believe Jesus was the Messiah as stated in the Hebrew Scriptures. No more. No less. Now that we got that out of the way, my appreciation stems from the fact that I grew up in a very Jewish area with some really close Jewish friends. That was just life for me. Bar and bat mitzvah's were a common occurrence. I've celebrated many of the major feasts. I've had my own kippah. And still to this day I live off of matzo ball soup in the winter. After having those conversations this week though, I realized that was not normal for people in other parts of the country and even the world. So my gratitude grew. I always loved the Jewish culture growing up, but I never knew why. Maybe it's because during hanukkah I'd always dream of being Jewish since they had EIGHT days of presents and I had ONE. Then as I got older I realized that Judaism is only the second most important part of my religion. Maybe that's a good indicator haha. So to say that I'm excited for this next adventure of studying the Old Testament would be an understatement. I'm ecstatic. Starting next week I'm going to be doing my blog posts a little different. I'll be writing them based on what book we studied the previous week from Genesis through Malachi. It'll be fun bringing in stories from a whole different light. I hope that's alright with all of you! Until then, shalom. Let me know if you need anything this week. Zach
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"Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it.
Hatred confuses life; love harmonizes it.
Hatred darkens life; love illuminates it."
Much love to MLK.
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As most of you know, I am very passionate about spreading positivity and good vibes to those around me. I believe that it's essential for completely enjoying your life. I believe it is possible to have a good day every single day by focusing on the positives in any and every negative situation. Some days suck. I get that. But you can choose whether or not you allow it to continue on and influence you.
You see, what you spend your time focusing about effects all areas of your life.
It effects your attitude.
It effects your situation.
It effects how people see you.
It effects how you see yourself.
It's a choice. You have the ability to choose what you focus your mind on and because of that it will essentially direct the course of your life.
There's this dude in the bible named James. He's actually Jesus' brother which is pretty sick. One thing that he said was that "every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father…".
Did you catch that?
Everything GOOD is from God.
That means everything BAD is from Satan. Right?
If you choose to focus on the good, that means you're giving God the credit of your mind.
On the flip side, if you focus on the bad, well….
I challenge all of you this week to have a better week than last. Take it one day at a time. If you have a bad day, so what. There's always tomorrow.
Lets kick the week off right though.
When was the last time you laughed so hard your stomach hurt?
When was the last time you couldn't stop smiling?
Who in your life makes you the happiest when they're around?
Those are the type of stories that I want to share with others and to spend my time thinking about. So let's see what you got! I want to hear them! Share those beautiful smiles with everyone.
God loves you guys SO much. Let me know if you need anything this week!
Z
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This one's long. But it's important. So be it.
Last night I had a great conversation with my roommate Timothy and we were discussing business. He was asking me questions and I was doing my best to answer as usual.
It's crazy because over the last ten years I have tried to spend as much time as possible with successful people that are older than me in order to pick their brain and gain some knowledge so that I can one day be on their level. I started doing it under my dad's suggestion and I wouldn't have done it any other way. Over the years it just became something that I did, I never saw it as being different, but recently I've really realized that I have been taught insight that your average twenty-something can't get anywhere else. I feel super blessed actually.
So, when I was chatting with Timothy last night I brought up the quote from the very famous entrepreneur, motivational speaker, and author Jim Rohn that says, "You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with." His mind was blown and his life was changed. That's wild because for me it's always been a way of life for me. Then I realized people aren't taught these things anywhere else unless they heard it in a business class or read one of his books. It's not common knowledge though and that was the eye opening part.
What's normal for me, is very different from how those around me have been taught.
I think good community is everything. Your future success is based off of it.
We are created to live in community and motivate those around us.
It's healthy.
It's challenging.
It's necessary.
God did not create us to be alone all of the time. He wants us to go through life with others.
Look at Jesus. He had his own crew even. They were called the 12 disciples.
We are to take that as a model and use it as direction. This is a prime spot in our lives to be selfish. If you aren't being selfish, I strongly suggest you to begin doing so. It's not a bad thing at all. It's for your well being. You choose your friends so why not choose them wisely?
As my dad used to say, "you can pick your friends and you can pick your nose, but you can't wipe your friends on the back of the couch." I don't even know what that means actually, but it sounded fitting ha.
Anyway, your friendships influence you whether you like it or not. Some of you reading this right now probably need to "break up" with some of your friends because they're dragging you down. I don't even need to tell you who they are.
Hint: They are the people that just popped into your mind.
So I would encourage all of you to think about how those around you play a part in your life. If they're positive friendships, keep them around. If they're negative, well...
That conversation last night really got me thinking about people that I spend my time with. My group of friends that make me me. My crew. I think I do things a little different than most though. A lot of my time is spent with people that I look up to. People that inspire me to better myself. Most closely are my guys Luke, Wade, Tony, and my parents. They are all so talented and push me to strive for greatness right alongside them every day.
Then I have the role models. The people I look up to. The people that play a far larger part in my life than they could ever imagine. Two of my biggest role models are my dad and Cesar. Even if we don't get to hang out every day, the nuggets of wisdom that I learn from those two are worth far more than anything in the world to me.
My dad's insight is out of this world. I'm pretty sure he knows everything. From teaching me about business and how to network (that's where I get it from) to inspiring me to pursue God every day, I would be nowhere without his wisdom being spoken into my life.
Then we have Cesar. Pastor and entrepreneur with one of the biggest hearts I know. We don't even get to hang that much, but every time we are together our conversations literally change my life. It's amazing. Whether we are discussing business, God, passions, whatever. I always walk away ready to conquer the world.
It's people like those two that we should spend our lives with.
People that inspire us.
People that teach us more about ourselves.
People that literally change your life through a conversation.
I'm so thankful to be blessed with such amazing people in my inner-circle. I strongly encourage all of you to pursue the right friendships and find a few role models that can speak truth into your life.
I love you all. Let me know if you need anything this week.
Z
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R E S T A R T Most of my life I was what people consider a "social butterfly". That's why when I began having anxiety attacks like crazy over the last year and a half it didn't really make sense. The first few times I had them I thought I was dying. I went to the doctor and they did countless tests with countless pre-diagnosis that ended up all being false. Basically they didn't know what was wrong with me. Then one time it hit so bad that I ended up going straight to the ER because I was sick of not know what was wrong. I had an EKG and blood tests done and the only conclusion that the doc came up with was that I was having anxiety attacks. He prescribed me with sleep, vitamin B, less caffeine, and slowing down my work ethic. Slowing down my work ethic? I didn't even know what that looked like. I had put so much pressure on myself over the years that all I really knew was working ridiculously hard if I wanted to succeed. If I wasn't working, I was slacking. Or at least that's what I told myself. So as a lot of you know, I've cut back some on stressing myself out over my work. I'm still not perfect, but I'm beginning to take advantage of my down time when I have it instead of constantly being on the go. I still get anxiety attacks every once in a while, but they are slowly dissipating. I'll tell you this much, I love my life and I love the work that I do. I work hard because I'm curious. I work hard because I want to see my dreams come to fruition. I work hard because I want to set an example and bring glory to God through it. One thing that I have learned out here over the last two weeks during my Christmas break is that slowing down every once in a while to refocus your life is essential. Sometimes life puts so much weight on your shoulders that you get lost in translation and your direction for the future becomes blurred. Don't let that happen as you begin 2015. Maybe a New Years resolution isn't the best idea this year. Maybe you need to push the restart button instead. Your future is based on the decisions you make today. Make them ones that you will be happy with. I believe you are all wonderfully made and destined for greatness. Let me know if you need anything this week. Z
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Let's just get straight to the point. I suck at surfing. Last summer when I was getting all of my ducks in a row for this trip I had envisioned that I would be surfing every morning and studying the bible every afternoon for nine months straight…that was before I realized how intense our workload was. So, hopping off of the plane with that mindset I bought a surfboard before I even bought a loaf of bread. I was confident, and far more excited than any 26 year old should be about a sport. I knew I'd be good though. I grew up wakeboarding, skateboarding, and snowboarding. Riding sideways was a part of my blood. Week One: I drank roughly three gallons of salt water. My head hurt. And it was obvious that my former workout routine did not encompass the proper muscles needed such constant motions. Week Three: Yikes. Week Five: I rode on my knees while my dignity remained in a slow drift out to sea. Sweet. Etc, etc, etc. So then came Christmas day. The plan was to surf in the morning, watch A Christmas Story while eating breakfast at the house of some of the coolest people I know, and then surf all afternoon. Might I add that I had yet to catch a wave. Oh yea...and the fact that some of my friends are basically professional surfers so having me along for the ride just meant I would be in the way a lot of the time. I do love sitting out in the water though so I was totally down with the game plan. After not being able to catch the first few waves that I paddled frantically after, my buddy Kyle offered to switch boards with me for a bit. He has a fatter board so I was keen to see if it would make a difference or if I was just clinically surf challenged. First wave. Nothing. Second wave I paddle my heart out and just as I think I'm going to get washed by the wave it begins to pull me without my help. My jaw drops and my eyes go wide like that blank faced emoji and I froze for .2 seconds. I snap back to reality (oh there goes gravity…just kidding) and I popped up just as I had been instructed to. I must have ridden the wave for a good five feet before falling off, but I didn't care. I was fist pumping the whole way down. That whole journey from the first try to the final try really made me think of how much life can be like surfing sometimes. We have a dream and we go, go, go. At first we fall a lot, then we get discouraged, then we progress a little, then we fall again, but that's just the process. Then other times we need to switch up our approach towards the same goal, just as I did with switching over to Kyle's potato board, which eventually led to success. Never stop pushing forward towards what you want. Eventually the wave will carry you ahead, past the conflicts and drama and into something great. Prayer and perseverance are the keys to life. You got this. I believe in you. Let me know if you need anything this week. Z
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It's crazy how distracted we can become over the Christmas season. There's family to deal with. Presents to open. Cookies to make. Parties to attend. A schedule to keep. Distractions. Distractions. Distractions. And we lose sight of what Christmas is really all about. Because of the distractions, it's actually very easy to get caught up in it all. It can feel like just another holiday where we have requirements to fulfill and the excitement of it being over with can be all too present. That's not what it's about though. I bet some of you don't even know the real meaning of Christmas and how important it is to humanity. How God sent His Son to die for YOU. And to die for ME. So that WE can have eternal life in Heaven. He took on OUR sin so that we don't have to bear it any more. Some of you don't even know what sin is and why Jesus taking it on is so important. That's ok. Sin is anything that pushes you farther away from God. Sin holds your hand as it walks you through the gates of hell. Trust me, I struggle just as much as you do, but by the grace of God I am saved from it. That is why Jesus came. And that's the real meaning of Christmas. Jesus came to save US so that we can spend eternity in Heaven. That is only possible though if you recognize your sins, ask God for forgiveness, and actually try to do better next time. The Bible makes it clear that that's what God wants. He loves you way too much to not give you that option. So as you wrap up this Christmas season, take a step back for a second and recognize the real reason for celebrating. Whether you've talked to God recently or not, He hears every single one of your prayers. So thank Him. Thank Him for giving us the gift of eternal life. Thank Him for sending Jesus. Because Jesus being born is the GREATEST gift you and I could/will ever receive. Merry Christmas to you and yours! Z
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