BE REALLY HAPPY!.

[Jesus said,] "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

MATTHEW 5:3.

IN HIS MOST FAMOUS MESSAGE, Jesus addressed a large crowd of people who had come to a hillside to hear Him. As He began to speak, the things He said were so different from anything the people had ever heard that He must have sounded as if He were from another planet! We call this list of statements "the Beat.i.tudes." Each one begins with the description of people being "blessed," a word that means to be happy-really happy. People had never been taught that they could experience joy like this, so Jesus' words almost certainly startled them. Happiness, Jesus explained in each one, comes from the most unlikely sources.

First, Jesus told the crowd that those who are "poor in spirit" can be really happy. Ironically, genuine joy comes from the soul-jarring insight that we are spiritually bankrupt, with nothing to offer. This isn't a false modesty. It's the real thing! Pride ruins relationships-with G.o.d and with everybody else. When we measure ourselves by other people, we might look pretty good, but when we compare our motives and our behavior to the fierce purity, perfection, and majesty of Almighty G.o.d, we quickly become aware that we fall short-way short.

This painful realization, though, opens the door to G.o.d's forgiveness, His purpose, and His presence. That's what the Kingdom of Heaven is all about-the experience of G.o.d in our lives on earth and in Heaven.

Few of us long to be spiritually bankrupt, but a gripping sense of need as we stand before G.o.d is the first and most important step for us to gain insight about what really matters. Then we can experience the wonder of knowing G.o.d.

Has there ever been a time when you felt "poor in spirit"? If so, describe it.

In what way is the reality of our spiritual need an open door to experiencing G.o.d?

"Jesus clothed the Beat.i.tudes with His own life." -CARL F. HENRY "I must recognize that the enemy within the camp-the flesh, the old nature, self, I, the old Adam-is a usurper. By faith I must reckon him to be in the place that G.o.d put him-crucified with Christ. I must realize that now my life is hid with Christ in G.o.d; that He is my life."-MAJOR IAN THOMAS

MARCH 3.

COMFORT WHEN IT COUNTS.

[Jesus said,] "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted."

MATTHEW 5:4.

MOST OF US immediately think of the death of a loved one when we identify things we grieve for, but we also grieve over other losses in life, such as the death of a dream, the loss of companionship, betrayal by friends, or chronic health problems. Yet our deepest sense of loss is of a spiritual nature. We mourn when we feel a sense of personal spiritual bankruptcy, realize our own sinfulness, and see our need to repent.

People today aren't good at mourning and repenting. We live in a society that promises immediate answers to problems and quick relief from pain. Gradually, most of us have come to believe that mourning is somehow subhuman. We've concluded that life should always be pleasant, but that's not the way it works. We live in a fallen world with fallen people. Hurts happen, and quite often they happen to us!

In this beat.i.tude, Jesus tells us that genuine comfort occurs only when we are honest about our spiritual condition. When we repent and express our disillusionment to G.o.d, we become receptive to His forgiveness. We may begin by demanding to know why the sin happened, but sooner or later, we'll realize that G.o.d knows, G.o.d cares, and G.o.d has a gracious purpose that is far bigger than whatever sin we have committed. We stop asking, "Why?" We put our hands in His hand, and we ask, "What now?" Repentance is taking the first step back toward G.o.d's very best purpose for our lives.

What are some events in which you need closure on a spiritual level?

What does it (or would it) mean for you to genuinely experience G.o.d's forgiveness for your failures?

"It's not what happens to you that determines how far you will go in life; it's how you handle what happens to you."-ZIG ZIGLAR

MARCH 4.

MEEK AIN'T WEAK

[Jesus said,] "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth."

MATTHEW 5:5.

THE WORD MEEK has a bad reputation. Most people hear it and think of someone cowering in timidity, but that's not what the word means. It actually means "power under control," like the strength and beauty of a champion racehorse under the direction of an expert jockey.

Meekness doesn't come naturally. Often, we see the opposite extreme of angry defiance or wilting fear. Meekness isn't a blend of those two traits; it's altogether different. G.o.d has given all of us a set of abilities and character qualities. We are gifted in relationships, tasks, goals, or reasoning, and our personalities shape the way we interact with people and the way we fulfill our responsibilities. Desire is completely normal, but too often, our desires control us instead of our controlling them.

Meekness acknowledges that all our abilities and qualities are gifts from the hand of G.o.d, but we also recognize that we distort G.o.d's original intentions when we pursue selfish aims. We thank G.o.d for all He has given us, and we put it all in His hands. Like the horse responding to the jockey's directions, we move in concert with G.o.d's instruction. And like the horse, we may sometimes need a little stronger motivation! The Scriptures tell us that the humble will be exalted (see Luke 18:14). When we allow G.o.d's Spirit to direct us, a world of possibilities opens up to us. That's what it means to "inherit the earth."

How would you define meekness?

What would your life look like if your strengths were under G.o.d's guidance?

"A man can counterfeit love, he can counterfeit faith, he can counterfeit hope, and all the other graces, but it is very difficult to counterfeit humility."-D. L. MOODY

MARCH 5.

FILL 'ER UP

[Jesus said,] "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled."

MATTHEW 5:6.

NOTHING SATISFIES like a good meal. All day, we antic.i.p.ate dinner with friends, and it turns out to be as good as we'd imagined! When we finish the dessert and the last cup of coffee, we push back our chairs and relax with our friends. We're "filled" in every way.

A fine dinner with good friends is perfect imagery for the satisfaction we experience when we hunger and thirst for G.o.d and His purposes. Hunger and thirst aren't aberrations in life; they are, in fact, signs of life. When we long, want, and desire the things of G.o.d, our hearts fill with His wisdom, love, and peace.

Jesus makes a point of saying that we experience real satisfaction when we long for righteousness. That word isn't used often today because it sounds, well, too churchy. Think of righteousness as a plumb line-a device that indicates when something is exactly vertical. Surveyors and builders use plumb lines, and we should too. The plumb line of righteousness in our lives isn't somebody's arbitrary list of dos and don'ts. Instead, it's a sign of our pa.s.sion to please G.o.d in everything we say and do. If we care that much about G.o.d, we won't have to worry about the details.

What do you hunger and thirst for-to please yourself, to please G.o.d, or some combination? Explain your answer.

How would it change your life if you realized that true satisfaction comes from a deep desire to please G.o.d?

"The true value of anything is known only when it is wanted."-J. N. DARBY

MARCH 6.

A LITTLE KINDNESS, PLEASE!.

[Jesus said,] "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy."

MATTHEW 5:7.

JESUS COULD HARDLY have made it any clearer: If you want to be on the receiving end of kindness, you have to show kindness to others first. It's the law of sowing and reaping. Mercy is responding compa.s.sionately to someone's hurt, going the extra mile to help people in need, and being willing to listen when someone wants to talk. Some of us are naturally predisposed to be merciful, but for others, it's a tough task!

Those who delight in justice want to see the guilty punished, wrongs righted, and boxes checked off so that they can move on to more pleasant things in life. But hurting people are all around us, and they'll always be here. Some are obvious, some are hidden, and some live in the same house as we do. We won't have a prayer of being merciful unless we notice people in need.

If our instant response to others in need is, "Well, they get what they deserve," then we haven't realized that, by G.o.d's grace, we don't get what we really deserve. If we have difficulty showing mercy-and some of us show it everywhere but at home-then we first need to go to the Cross to realize the wealth of G.o.d's grace, mercy, kindness, and forgiveness given to us. With this realization fresh on our hearts, we'll be quicker to extend mercy to others in need around us.

We don't have to wait for someone else to begin the reciprocity of mercy. G.o.d has already started it. We just need to respond to Him . . . and to people in need.

Describe a time when someone extended mercy to you. How did it affect you?

How would it affect your most difficult relationship if you were merciful to that person?

"Constant kindness can accomplish much. As the sun makes the ice melt, kindness causes misunderstandings, mistrust and hostility to evaporate."-ALBERT SCHWEITZER

MARCH 7.

NO DISTRACTIONS.

[Jesus said,] "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see G.o.d."

MATTHEW 5:8.

"ARE YOU KIDDING?" someone might ask. "All of us have selfish thoughts even if we hide our selfish behaviors. How can anyone be 'pure in heart'?"

Good question. It was tough in Jesus' day to have a pure heart-which is a heart that overcomes selfishness and is riveted on the greatness and the purposes of G.o.d-and it's just as difficult now. When our eyes wander to look at beautiful and tempting things, our hearts quickly follow. We make solemn vows to change, but we fail again and again.

Purity of heart isn't perfection. Instead, it's the pa.s.sionate desire to know and follow Christ. In this life, we'll experience all kinds of temptations, distractions, and detours, but G.o.d is looking for men and women who will keep pursuing Him, even if we stumble from time to time.

Jesus promises that we will be richly rewarded for pursuing G.o.d with all our hearts. We'll see G.o.d as He speaks to us through the Scriptures, as He works in us to change our hearts, and as He works through us to have an impact on others. As our hearts become more pure, we will care less and less about how much money, fame, or power we possess, and we'll care more and more about pleasing the One who loves us so much.

What would a pa.s.sionate pursuit of G.o.d look like in your life?

What are you willing to abandon in order to truly see G.o.d?

"Let the seeking man reach a place where life and lips join to say continually, 'Be thou exalted,' and a thousand minor problems will be solved at once. His Christian life ceases to be the complicated thing it had been before and becomes the very essence of simplicity."-A. W. TOZER

MARCH 8.